This is Home
by 09sarahbean
Summary: Lucy Jones, an eleven-year-old witch from America, is invited to attend Hogwarts, where she immediately finds friends and a home away from home. First story in the Lucy Jones series.
1. Prologue: Separated

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Prologue – Separated**

"For God's sake, Albus!"

Albus Dumbledore looked up from his desk to the professor in front of him. She looked confused, to say the least.

"Please tell me you didn't _kidnap_ the girl!" Professor Minerva McGonagall motioned to the bundled form lying in a basket on the floor.

Dumbledore pressed the tips of his fingers together and surveyed the woman from over the top of his half-moon glasses. "I did not kidnap her," he replied evenly. "Lily and James agreed that she should be taken away, to keep her safe."

"I would think she'd be safe enough with her own parents," Professor McGonagall shot back crisply. "They are under heavy protection, after all."

"They may be under heavy protection, but we cannot make them disappear completely," Dumbledore pressed. "Voldemort knows that the Potters are in hiding."

Professor McGonagall shuddered at the use of the name.

"He may not know where, but he knows about them," Dumbledore continued, ignoring her reaction. "He knows about their son Harry, but he doesn't know about their daughter—he doesn't know about Lucy."

"Do you think they aren't safe enough?" Professor McGonagall asked. "Do you think something is going to happen?"

"I don't have any idea what is going to happen," Dumbledore answered heavily. "As long as Voldemort is alive, the Potters are in danger. The least we can do is make sure one of them has the chance to survive. The possibility of Voldemort discovering Lucy is almost zero now."

"How did Lily and James respond when you told them you were taking their daughter away?" Professor McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore was silent for a moment, looking down at the small baby in the basket. "It was Lily's idea," he murmured. "She knows that her family is in considerable danger. She trusts us and the rest of the Order. Yet she knows how to gamble properly: she wants to give her daughter the chance at a normal life. If everything goes well—if Voldemort is destroyed before he finds the Potters—then Lucy will be returned to her family."

"But for now, we should plan for the worst?" Professor McGonagall finished for him in an anxious tone.

"If you'd like to put it that way," Dumbledore answered. "Only a few people know about Lucy. If we can just get her out of here, Lucy should be able to live a long, happy life. She will hopefully be free of any danger that involves Voldemort."

There was a knock on the door, and Professor McGonagall jumped up quickly, looking at Lucy. But Dumbledore calmly called, "Enter."

A young man quickly crossed the threshold, shutting the door behind him quietly.

"Ah, Remus," Dumbledore said.

"Remus Lupin?" Professor McGonagall asked curiously.

The man nodded, smiling at his old Transfiguration teacher. Professor McGonagall smiled back and then shot Dumbledore a questioning look.

"Is this her?" Remus asked, peering closer to the basket.

Dumbledore nodded silently, getting up from his chair to pick up the basket. "You know what to do, Remus," he said, handing the child over.

Remus couldn't help but take a peek in the blankets; the baby girl was fast asleep. "You have my word," Remus promised. "I will get the girl to her new family safely."

Dumbledore nodded his approval, and he motioned for the door. "Not a moment to lose," he murmured.

Remus walked briskly out of the office, holding the basket tightly between his hands. The door shut quietly behind him, and there was silence for a moment.

"Where are you sending her?" Professor McGonagall asked in a hushed voice.

"The United States," Dumbledore replied. "There is a magical couple in Massachusetts who can't have children of their own."

"Do they know who she is?" Professor McGonagall questioned.

There was a pause.

"No," Dumbledore said, "and it would be best for everyone involved if they didn't know." He sighed heavily before resuming his place behind his desk.

"Are you sure that's wise?" Professor McGonagall asked in an accusatory tone.

"The fewer people who know about her, the better," Dumbledore answered shortly. "As I said, the possibility of Voldemort discovering Lucy is nearly zero now, and this is the best way to make sure that he remains unaware of her existence."

Professor McGonagall eyed the headmaster for a moment longer before straightening up. "If that's what you think is best," she conceded. "Good night, Albus."

"Good night, Minerva," Dumbledore replied.

As soon as Professor McGonagall left the office, Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and whispered, "Good luck, Lucy Potter."

 **~LJ:TH~**

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 _ **A/N: Well, here we go again! Welcome back to my new-old story, where a lot of changes have happened. This includes my main character's name, which is now Lucy instead of Liza. I was working on later stories in the series, and the name Liza wasn't working in my head anymore; hence the change.**_

 _ **Just a bit of a warning for all of you: this story is an AU based on the plot of the Harry Potter series. I'm writing this story assuming that you all know how Harry Potter goes. Also, there is dialogue throughout my stories that's lifted directly from the books. If that's something that bothers you, don't read this series. I'm not making any money or anything by writing this story; I'm doing it for fun, and I figured I'd share it with people for fun.**_

 _ **I have the list of titles and ratings for each stories in this series on my profile. The ratings do change as the series goes on. Just wanted to give a heads up about that.**_

 _ **Last, but not least, I'll be able to have an actual upload schedule for this series! I used to never promise to upload chapters on a regular basis, because I was uploading while I was still writing. Now that the entire series is finished, I can attempt to make that promise. So the upload schedule for this series will be Mondays and Thursdays. (I'm even going to set a reminder on my phone ha.) I'm not going to promise a time of day, but I will try my hardest to stick to that schedule.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading!** **I hope you all enjoy this story, and if you don't, thanks for giving it a try anyway.**_


	2. 1: Lucy Jones

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

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 _ **This is home  
Now I'm finally where I belong  
This is home  
I've been searching for a place of my own  
Now I've found it  
Maybe this is home**_

 _ **This is Home by Switchfoot**_

 **Chapter 1 – Lucy Jones**

Lucy Jones was not a normal 10-year-old girl; at least, not to an ordinary person. She looked normal. She was on the slightly shorter side, her jet-black hair fell to the middle of her back, and she had bright hazel eyes. She lived with her parents in a small, cottage-like home in a tiny, almost non-existent town in Massachusetts.

The way that she was not normal was that she was a witch, and her mom and dad were a witch and a wizard, respectfully.

However, she looked very ordinary at the moment, other than the fact that she wasn't down the street playing with any of the other neighborhood children. She was laying on the grass in front of her house with her arms behind her head, and she was gazing up at the sky.

With a sigh, she wished, once again, that she could have some siblings to play with. Although she knew her mom and dad couldn't have any children of their own, she couldn't help but wish, especially on dull days when she didn't have anything else to do.

Lucy's parents weren't her birth parents. They had told her that she was adopted as soon as they felt that she was old enough to know. Lucy's adoptive parents were named Dan and Sue Jones. Dan worked for the Magical Congress of the USA, and Sue worked a part-time job in a robe shop.

Lucy wished that she knew who her birth parents had been. She was very grateful for her adoptive parents, but they would never be her birth parents. Unfortunately, not even Dan nor Sue knew who her parents had been.

Getting bored, Lucy sat up and looked around her. A rock was sitting in the grass not too far away. She stared at it, concentrating on it and willing it to move. Finally, slowly, the rock started to rise from the grass. It was a couple of feet off the ground when—

"LUCY!"

 _Oops_ , Lucy thought as she turned to look guiltily at Sue, who was standing in the doorway and frowning down at the girl. Lucy smiled sheepishly before shrugging her shoulders. "Sorry, Mom," she apologized. "I just… got a little bored."

Sue shook her head, smiling slightly, and then beckoned Lucy into the house. "If you're going to practice magic, at least do it inside from now on, okay?" Sue instructed.

Lucy shrugged and got up from the grass. She went to her mother and followed her into the house.

As Sue shut the door behind them, she went on, "Remember, you can't be performing any magic once you start school. At least, not before you turn seventeen."

Lucy nodded. She was extremely excited to be starting witchcraft school in the fall. Finally, she would have a wand and be able to do magic, too. "When do you think I'll get my letter from Ilvermorny?" she asked as she plopped down onto one of the dining room chairs. Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was the American school of magic that Lucy was planning on attending.

Sue looked up, and she seemed to hesitate before she smiled down at her adopted daughter. "I'm not sure," she replied. "Probably sometime around your birthday."

Lucy smiled widely. Her eleventh birthday was coming up in a few weeks, on which her dad had promised to take her shopping for her school things. As she began imagining the magic she would be learning at Ilvermorny, she couldn't help but wonder why her mother had seemed so hesitant. Was there something going on that Sue wasn't telling her?

 **~LJ:TH~**

It was a week before Lucy's eleventh birthday, and she was growing impatient. She still hadn't received her letter from Ilvermorny. That morning she was sitting in the kitchen with her parents before they had to leave for work. Dan's sister—the only living relative of Lucy's adoptive parents—would be coming over soon to stay with Lucy.

"When is the mail going to get here?" Lucy asked anxiously, her eyes glued to the kitchen window. Their family owl, Thomas, was nowhere in sight.

"I'm sure it will be here soon, dear," Sue said. "Please eat your breakfast."

Lucy frowned, looking back down at her plate of food. She stabbed moodily at her eggs, trying to be patient.

A few minutes later, Lucy heard a screech. She looked up excitedly to see Thomas swooping into the kitchen through the window. There were a few envelopes in his beak, which he dropped onto an empty spot on the table. Dan promptly picked them up and started thumbing through them.

"Anything for me?" Lucy asked, not trying to sound too excited.

Dan paused, staring at one of the envelopes. Then he showed it to Sue, who nodded. "Lucy," Dan began, "there's something your mother and I need to talk to you about."

Lucy immediately felt nervous, and she dropped her fork onto the table with a clatter.

"It's good news, dear," Sue said quickly, patting Lucy's hand reassuringly.

Lucy sat up straighter. "What is it?" she asked.

"Your mother and I received a letter from Albus Dumbledore at the beginning of the summer," Dan explained. "Have you heard of Dumbledore before?" Both he and Sue looked at Lucy expectantly.

"Yes," Lucy replied. "Isn't he from Britain?"

"He is," Sue confirmed before turning back to her husband.

"He is the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and he has extended an invitation for you to attend," Dan finished.

Lucy frowned in confusion. "But… I'm American," she said. "Doesn't that mean I should go to Ilvermorny?"

Dan and Sue exchanged a glance.

"I suppose it's time to tell you what we know about your birth parents," Sue said.

Lucy's heart leapt hopefully at that; she'd always wanted to know more about where she'd come from.

"First of all, we want you to know that we have very limited information about your parents," Dan began. "What we _do_ know is that eleven years ago, when you were born, there was a war taking place in Britain. We've told you about You-Know-Who, of course."

Lucy shuddered involuntarily at the thought of You-Know-Who. He had wanted to take over the entire Wizarding world. Eventually, he had been stopped by an infant named Harry Potter, and nobody was quite sure how a baby had been able to defeat such a Dark wizard.

"Your birth parents were from England," Dan went on. "They were fighting in the resistance against You-Know-Who. Unfortunately, because of this, they were targeted by You-Know-Who. He sent some of his followers to track them down. So, in an attempt to keep you safe, they decided to temporarily send you out of England. We were contacted by Dumbledore himself about taking you in until You-Know-Who was defeated, and your parents were safe again."

Lucy's mouth felt dry, because she knew that this story didn't have a happy ending.

"Your parents were killed shortly after you arrived at our house," Dan finished. "Since Dumbledore told us that there were no living relatives to take you in, we decided to fully adopt you. However, since you were born over there, Hogwarts is the school that you're meant to attend. Your name has been down for it since you were born."

"Oh," Lucy said, feeling speechless.

There was a lot of new information she had just been given, and she was finding it hard to process. She never would have guessed that her parents were from an entirely different country, nor had she ever thought that they would have been killed on the orders of the most evil wizard of their time.

"I know it's a lot to take in," Sue said sadly. "We always thought that you would go to Ilvermorny, and so we had decided to tell you about your birth parents once you turned seventeen. However—given the circumstances—if you wanted to go to Hogwarts, it was only fair that we tell you why you're being accepted there."

There was a pause while Lucy continued to think.

"That's all you know about my birth parents?" she asked eventually.

"Yes," Dan replied. "When we took you in permanently, we contacted Dumbledore and asked for more information about your parents. He said that for your own safety, it would be best if we didn't know their identity."

"But You-Know-Who's gone," Lucy insisted. "What is he still trying to keep me safe from?"

"We're not sure," Sue admitted. "This _is_ Dumbledore, though. He led the resistance group against You-Know-Who during the war. Maybe he knows something that the rest of us don't."

Again, there was silence.

Lucy's thoughts turned back to her schooling. "So, let's say I wanted to go to Hogwarts instead of Ilvermorny," she said. "Does that mean we would have to move to England?"

"Well… no," Dan answered slowly. "Your mother and I belong here."

Lucy frowned in confusion.

"Dumbledore has informed us that a family is willing to take you in," Sue went on. "They'd be sort of like a host family. They would take care of you while you're in England."

"Go to England… without you?" Lucy asked to clarify. Her head started spinning slightly.

How could she go all the way to another country just to attend school? Sure, at Ilvermorny she would be away from her parents, but they wouldn't be very far. She also knew that, because they were a magical family, there were ways of traveling that were almost instantaneous, but it was still an unnerving thought.

"Sweetheart? Are you all right?" Sue asked, looking worried. Lucy nodded wordlessly, and Sue continued, "You would still come home to us during the summer. Dumbledore also explained that they let students visit home over Christmas."

Lucy remained quiet for a while, still thinking carefully. This _was_ a once in a lifetime opportunity. Hogwarts was older than Ilvermorny, so she was sure it would be a fascinating place. She didn't really have any friends in America to leave behind, either. Plus, if her birth parents had gone to school there, maybe she could find out who they were and what had happened to them.

"If I don't like it there… can I come back here and go to Ilvermorny?" Lucy finally asked.

"Of course, you can, sweetie," Sue replied. She looked a bit sad. "Does this mean you want to go to Hogwarts?"

"I'd like to try it," Lucy answered. She left her thoughts of finding out about her birth parents to herself.

"Then you should probably go ahead and open this," Dan said, holding out the envelope that he had found in their pile of mail.

Lucy took it and saw that it was addressed to her. "What is it?" she asked.

"I think it's the letter letting you know that you've been accepted into Hogwarts, should you choose to go," Dan replied. "Dumbledore let us know that you would be receiving one."

Lucy carefully slit open the envelope and pulled the contents out. There were two sheets of parchment and a smaller slip of paper. The top piece of parchment was a letter, and Lucy began by reading it.

 _Dear Miss Jones,_

 _We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

 _Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

 _Yours sincerely,_

 _Minerva McGonagall_

 _Deputy Headmistress_

The other sheet of parchment in Lucy's envelope was a supply list, and the small paper was a ticket of some kind.

"It says here that we have to send them an owl by July thirty-first," she said when she was done reading. She handed the letter over to Sue. "What does that mean?"

"We just need to send them a letter to let them know that you're planning on attending," Sue replied. "I'll write to them this afternoon when I get home from work as long as you're sure you want to go."

"I want to," Lucy said with a nod.

"All right," Sue said briskly. "Your father and I will get everything set up." She smiled at Lucy before standing up and tending to the dishes.

Lucy looked back down at the list of school supplies that she would need. Her eyes zeroed in on a single word that was listed just under the _Other_ _Equipment_ heading. "A wand?" she asked, confused. "Hogwarts students get their wands before they get to school?" At Ilvermorny, students acquired their wand when they arrived at school for their first year.

"What's that, dear?" Sue questioned, returning to the table.

"It says on this supply list that I need to get a wand," Lucy replied.

"Well, it's not Ilvermorny," Dan said. "They just have a different way of doing things over there, I suppose."

Lucy shrugged and returned to looking at her list. A grin grew on her face as she realized that this was really happening. Very soon, she would be attending school to become a witch. She would also be in England, which was hopefully one step closer to finding out who her birth parents had been.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The day before her eleventh birthday, Dan and Sue sat Lucy down in the living room.

"We have more news for you," Dan began. "We have been in contact with your host family, and they have offered to let us all stay with them until you have to leave for school. That way we can get you all settled in, and you can get to know them for a while before you go to Hogwarts. What do you think?"

"That sounds like a good idea to me," Lucy said. "You both would be coming with me?"

"They invited your mother and I, as well, yes," Dan replied. "We've both gotten the month off from work to accompany you."

Lucy felt relieved; as excited as she was to meet new people, it made her nervous thinking about living with strangers in a new country. Having her parents there for a while would help her to ease into living in England.

"So, when are we going to go over there?" Lucy asked.

"Well, I promised we could go shopping on your birthday," Dan said, "and I want to stand by that promise. Your host family has offered to take us shopping in England for your things. If we want to do that then we would have to leave tomorrow."

Lucy grinned widely, glad her father had remembered his promise. "That'd be great, Dad," she replied.

"I'm glad you think so," Dan said. "Everything has already been set up. We'll have to leave relatively early tomorrow morning to deal with the time change."

"So how are we getting there?" Lucy asked.

"We'll have to use the International Floo Network at the Congress," Dan replied. "It will take us to Great Britain's Ministry of Magic, where we can then Floo to your host family's home."

"Can't we just Floo right to their house?" Lucy questioned, frowning.

"The American Floo Network isn't connected to Great Britain's," Dan answered. "The only way of traveling by Floo between certain countries is to use the International Network. It's one of those things that's highly regulated by the International Confederation of Wizards."

Lucy nodded. "I suppose I'd better pack then," she said.

Sue clapped her hands together. "Come on, sweetie," she said, "I got you a trunk a few days ago." She stood up and held a hand out to Lucy, who took it and walked with her mom towards the stairs. As they went, Sue continued, "It has an Extension Charm cast on it so that you can fit as many things in it as you need, and a Feather-Light Charm to help you carry it."

"I'll get some dinner ready!" Dan called to their retreating forms.

As Lucy climbed the stairs to her bedroom, she couldn't help but be excited. The next day, she would be going to get her school things.

 **~LJ:TH~**

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 _ **A/N: So, I know that according to the Harry Potter universe, American witches and wizards call the Magical Congress of the USA 'MACUSA', but I found that to be a bit ridiculous. In this story, they refer to it as the Congress.**_

 ** _FYI: This story has fifteen chapters, plus the prologue that has already been posted._**

 ** _An important change already (sorry ha): I mapped out a posting schedule, and if I post on Mondays and Thursdays, I won't be finished until early 2020. Oops! So, the first two stories are going to be posted on the Monday, Thursday schedule, but when I get to story three, I'm going to change it to Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I'll remind you all again when we get to that point, but doing it this way, I'll be finished posting by mid-December 2019._**


	3. 2: School Shopping

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 2 – School Shopping**

The next morning, the Jones family gathered in the living room. Sue and Dan had their suitcases by their sides, and Lucy stood behind them next to a large trunk that had inside it all her things that she would be taking to school.

Dan picked up a small vase from beside the fireplace and held it out to Sue. She reached in, and when she pulled her arm back out, there was a fistful of some powdery substance in her hand: Floo Powder. Lucy was used to using Floo Powder to travel since she was too young to Apparate.

"Remember, we're going to the Congress," Sue reminded Lucy. "I'll go first, and Dad will follow you." She smiled encouragingly, and Lucy returned it.

Sue turned back to the fireplace and threw the Floo Powder into it. The flames turned bright green. Then, holding her suitcase close to her, Sue stepped right into the flames and called out, "Magical Congress of the USA!" With a _whoosh_ , she was gone.

"Your turn, princess," Dan said.

He offered Lucy the vase, and Lucy dipped her hand inside, reaching deeper until she felt the sandy powder on her fingers. She grabbed a handful and carefully withdrew her hand. Then she tossed her powder into the fireplace, and the flames turned green once again. She stepped into the fire, and Dan set up her trunk next to her.

Lucy grasped it firmly and gave her father a small smile. "Magical Congress of the USA!" she called.

She kept one hand tightly on her trunk as she heard a roar. The green flames surrounded her as she seemed to fly through the fireplace. She kept her mouth tightly shut for fear of swallowing any ash.

Then, almost as suddenly as they had started, the flames slowed down, and she could almost make out rooms whipping past her vision. Finally, the roaring stopped, and Lucy found herself flopping face first onto a stone floor. She heard her trunk fall forward with a loud _thunk_.

"Lucy!" a voice exclaimed—Sue. "Are you all right, sweetie?"

Lucy pushed herself onto her knees, looking up for her mother. When she spotted her, Lucy smiled and nodded. "I'm fine, Mom," she replied.

"Come on," Sue said, offering Lucy her hand. "Let's get you up." She pulled Lucy to her feet and brushed the ash from her shirt.

Lucy looked around the chamber that she and Sue were currently standing in. There were other witches and wizards coming and going via the multiple fireplaces in the room.

A moment later, Dan appeared out of the flames. "Come along this way," he said, pulling his wand out and levitating Lucy's trunk in front of him.

He led the way out of the fireplace room and into the main atrium. Sue and Lucy hurried after him. Dan, who worked at the Congress, knew exactly where he was going. They took an elevator up a few floors, where the Floo Network Department was located. Dan exchanged greetings with some of the workers they passed, and soon they were entering the offices that housed the Floo Network Department.

"Good morning," Dan said to the wizard at the front desk. "We're here to use the International Floo."

"Do you have your paperwork?" the wizard asked, almost sounding bored.

Dan reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a few sheets of paper. He passed them across the desk to the wizard, who examined them for a moment.

"Very well," the wizard said. He pulled out a large rubber stamp and smacked the papers with it. Then he handed the paperwork back, saying, "Through there, second door on the right." He pointed to a set of double doors.

Dan nodded his thanks, and the Joneses continued on.

The room they entered was fairly small. Inside was only a large fireplace against the opposite wall, and there was a witch standing guard.

"Morning," she said brightly to the family. "Where are we headed today?"

"We're going over to Britain," Dan replied, holding out their paperwork again.

The witched looked at it briefly before giving it back. "Well, enjoy your stay," she said, holding out a jar that was full of Floo Powder.

"Sue," Dan said, gesturing to his wife to go first.

Sue took a fistful of the powder and threw it into the fireplace. Then she stepped into the flames. "British Ministry of Magic!" she announced, and she disappeared.

"Did you get that?" Dan asked Lucy, who nodded.

She stepped up to the fireplace, threw some powder in, and stood in the fire. Dan stood up her trunk again, and she grabbed it tightly.

"British Ministry of Magic!" she said. She felt herself whirling away.

In a shorter amount of time than she'd expected, Lucy slowed down and fell out of the next fireplace. She looked around immediately for Sue and found her standing nearby. There was another witch next to her. Sue offered Lucy her hand and pulled her daughter to her feet.

A few moments later, Dan appeared, as well.

"Hello," the witch said warmly. "Welcome to the British Ministry of Magic. May I see your paperwork?" Dan once again handed his papers over, and the witch quickly glanced through them. "Looks like everything is in order," she said, taking one of the pages and putting in on the desk next to her. She handed the other sheets back and asked, "How may I direct you today?"

"We are looking to use a normal Floo to reach our next destination," Dan replied.

The witch nodded. "I will call for someone to take you to the Atrium," she said. "You may wait outside. Have a nice day!"

Lucy followed her parents out of the room and found herself in an office.

After a moment, a young-looking wizard hurried up to them. "Good afternoon," he said. "I'm supposed to lead you to the Atrium. Are you ready?"

"Yes," Dan replied.

Lucy, Dan, and Sue followed the wizard through the office and out into an elevator bay. After waiting for a minute, they got into an elevator and ascended to the Atrium level.

"Whoa," Lucy said as they walked through the Atrium.

In the middle of the room, there was a giant fountain. In the center was a wizard with his wand held up in the air, and a stream of water jetted from the end of it. Gathered around him was a witch—also with water coming from her wand; a centaur—with water spraying out of the end of his bow and arrow; a goblin—who had water coming from the point of his hat; and a house-elf—with water coming out of the tips of its ears.

"That is our Fountain of Magical Brethren," the wizard leading them explained. "It depicts the peace and harmony between both wizard-kind and magical creatures."

They walked a little further, entering a wide corridor where there were fireplaces along the walls on either side. The wizard guided them to the left-hand side of the hall, where there was a short line of witches and wizards waiting to depart.

"Here you are," the wizard said. "Any of these fireplaces will take you out of the Ministry. Good afternoon." Then, after giving them a short bow, the wizard retreated.

Lucy, Dan, and Sue didn't have to wait long until a fireplace became available. The three of them went up to it, noticing that there were pots of Floo Powder hanging on the wall next to the fireplaces.

"Sue again," Dan said with a smile.

Sue nodded and turned to Lucy. "We're going to a place called The Burrow," she informed her daughter. Then she went back to the fireplace and was soon disappearing in the flames.

"The Burrow?" Lucy repeated, looking to Dan for confirmation.

"That's right," he said. "Go ahead, princess."

Lucy stepped forward and took some Floor Powder. She was glad that this would be the last trip; she was getting a little tired of using the Floo Network. Throwing the powder in, she stepped into the flames and took hold of her trunk once again. "The Burrow!" she announced, and then she was off.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Shortly after, Lucy was deposited onto the rug-covered floor of a sitting room. She looked up, wondering to herself if she would ever stop falling out fireplaces while traveling by Floo Powder, and took Sue's offered hand to help her off the floor.

When Lucy was on her feet, she looked around the room to see a middle-aged woman—maybe a few years older than Sue—surrounded by five children. There were four boys and one girl. They all had the same flaming red hair and were looking at Lucy with interested expressions.

Before any introductions could be made, Dan came out of the fireplace.

"Hello again," he said brightly to Sue and Lucy. He turned to the other woman and offered his hand in greeting. "Nice to meet you. I'm Dan Jones, and this is my wife Sue and our daughter Lucy."

"It is lovely to meet you," the woman replied warmly, accepting Dan's hand. She and Sue also shook hands, and then the woman turned to Lucy.

"It is so good to meet you at last, Lucy," she continued, shaking hands with Lucy. "You are in good hands; count on that. When Dumbledore contacted Arthur—my husband—about a young girl needing a family to stay with, we of course took the opportunity at once!"

She beckoned her children forward and went on, "Anyway, my name is Molly Weasley, and these are five of my children. The oldest one is Percy—"

Percy waved from the back.

"—and the twins are Fred and George. You'll learn to figure out who is who eventually," Mrs. Weasley added with a wink. "They tease me when I mix them up.

"And here's my youngest son Ron." Mrs. Weasley grabbed Ron's arm and dragged him forward. "He's the same age as you are, Lucy. And this is my daughter Ginny. My sons Bill and Charlie are off on their own now, bless them, but maybe you'll get a chance to meet Bill sometime before you have to leave for Hogwarts."

"Why not Charlie?" Lucy asked curiously.

"Oh, well, he's in Romania studying dragons," Mrs. Weasley replied. "He doesn't take vacation all that often. Maybe he'll surprise us in August for Ginny's and Percy's birthdays," she added as an afterthought. "Anyways, come in! Come in! Dan and Sue, Fred and George will show you to your bedroom, and Lucy, you'll be sharing with Ginny. We're a little cramped for space, but you know what they say: the more, the merrier!"

Her kids all rolled their eyes before Fred and George grabbed Dan's and Sue's bags and showed them upstairs. Percy excused himself, his chest thrust out slightly to show off the gleaming badge on his shirt. Lucy looked at it quizzically.

"Percy's just been made a prefect at Hogwarts," Mrs. Weasley explained happily, noticing where Lucy was looking. "He's the third one in the family, right after Bill and Charlie." She beamed after her son before hurrying from the room.

"Sorry about her," Ron said after she was gone. "She's just really proud of them, is all. Puts a lot of pressure on us, though. Right, Ginny?"

Ginny nodded and shrugged at the same time. "We ought to warn you, though," she said to Lucy in a serious tone. "If you get Sorted into Slytherin, Mum and Dad will kick you out of the house."

Lucy's eyes widened. "What? What's Slytherin?" she asked worriedly.

Ginny chuckled and said, "I'm only joking."

Ron shot her a glare. "I forgot that you probably don't know much about Hogwarts," he started, turning back to Lucy. "There are four houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Everyone in our family has been sorted into Gryffindor… which means I probably will, too. Slytherin is where all the evil witches and wizards come from. I'm not exactly sure why, but Fred and George tell stories. If you're sorted into Slytherin, though, Mum and Dad won't kick you out. They wouldn't do that."

Lucy nodded, relieved. She sort of hoped, however, that she wouldn't be put into Slytherin.

"Sorry, couldn't help but tease you a bit," Ginny said. "I just wish _I_ could go, but I'm not old enough yet. Oh, by the way, I should show you to my room, so you can put your trunk there." She then skipped away toward the stairs.

Ron shrugged, and he helped Lucy carry her trunk up to Ginny's room. When they reached the bedroom, Lucy and Ron kicked the trunk to the end of the cot that had been set up. Then Lucy took a look around the room.

"Wow, you have a beautiful view from up here," she commented, gazing out the window.

Ginny was sitting on her bed, hugging her knees to her chest. She smiled. "Yeah, Fred and George used to complain that I have the best room in the house," she replied.

"You lot! Come on! We're going to go to Diagon Alley for school shopping!" Mrs. Weasley called up the stairs.

Lucy squealed with happiness, and Ron and Ginny laughed at her response. The three of them hurried back downstairs and into the Weasleys' sitting room.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Once all six children were gathered, Mrs. Weasley retrieved a flower pot from the mantel.

"We're going to Diagon Alley in London," she explained to Lucy and her parents. Then, turning to her children, she asked, "Do you boys all have your Hogwarts lists?"

The boys all murmured their confirmation.

Mrs. Weasley nodded her approval before offering the flower pot to Dan. "Guests first!" she said.

One by one, they all used the Floo Network to travel to Diagon Alley. Mrs. Weasley sent Lucy through the fire after the twins. When Lucy reached her destination, one of the twins held out his hand to help her up off the floor.

"Thanks," Lucy said after he had hauled her to her feet. "You're… George, right?"

The twin smiled. "Yeah," he answered. "I'm impressed that you can tell us apart already. Unless you were just guessing. In that case, you're a good guesser."

"I paid attention to what you and your brother were wearing when your mother introduced you," Lucy replied with a smirk.

George looked down at his shirt. "I didn't even think of that," he said. He narrowed his eyes at Lucy. "Challenge accepted, new girl." He winked at her, and Lucy giggled.

"George, behave yourself," Mrs. Weasley said, having just appeared in the fireplace. "Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron," she continued, looking between Dan, Sue, and Lucy. "This is the pub that guards the entrance to Diagon Alley. Come along."

Taking the lead, Mrs. Weasley guided her children and the Joneses through the pub and out the back door. Lucy was confused when they left the pub and were standing on a slab of concrete facing a brick wall.

However, Mrs. Weasley pulled out her wand and used it to touch a specific brick. The bricks in the wall began to shift, and soon an archway appeared. Lucy could see that on the other side of the wall, there was a road. Mrs. Weasley went through the arch first, followed by the others.

"Wow," Lucy breathed, looking around with wide eyes.

They were on a long road that was lined with buildings. Lucy was impressed that all of this was hidden right in the middle of London. Witches and wizards walked along, chatting and carrying large shopping bags.

"There's actually something else your mother and I have to tell you, Lucy," Dan said, drawing Lucy's attention back to her parents. Dan reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a silver key. He held it out to his daughter, saying, "This is the key to your very own vault at Gringotts Bank. Your birth parents left it to you. Dumbledore sent it on when we let Hogwarts know that you would be attending."

"My own vault?" Lucy repeated, taking the key from him. "Does that mean there's something in it?"

"We won't know until we check," Sue said. She turned to Mrs. Weasley and asked, "Where is Gringotts, anyway?"

Mrs. Weasley pointed down the street to the large, glittering white building at the end of the road. "I have to stop in there, as well," she said. "We can all go together."

They reached the bank, and a pair of goblins bowed the group into the building. Inside were more goblins sitting behind two long tables that ran the length of the room. Mrs. Weasley led the group up to an available goblin.

"Hello," she said. "We need to go down to a couple of vaults."

"May I see the keys of the vaults you wish to visit?" the goblin asked.

Mrs. Weasley searched her bag for a moment before pulling out a key and handing it over to the goblin. "Lucy, can you show the goblin your key, as well?" she requested kindly.

Lucy immediately gave her new key to the goblin.

He examined both keys for a moment before nodding. "Very well," he said. "Everything seems to be in order. I'll call for someone to take you down."

As he was finding a goblin to take them down to their vaults, Mrs. Weasley turned to her children. "I don't think you all need to come down with us," she said.

"I can stay with the kids, Molly," Dan volunteered. "We'll wait for you outside, if that's all right."

"Oh, thank you, Dan," Mrs. Weasley said. "Then Sue, Lucy, and I will be back in a little while." She glanced over at her children and added severely, " _Behave yourselves_. No wandering off."

"Yes, Mum," the Weasleys all chorused. They turned and exited the bank with Dan just as another goblin had appeared.

"I'm to take you down to your vaults," the goblin reported.

He led the way through a door off the main lobby. They walked down a dark tunnel until they came to a track with a little cart waiting for them. Mrs. Weasley climbed into the cart first, and Sue and Lucy followed. When they were all settled, the cart shot off into the darkness.

They were only moving for a few minutes before the cart screeched to a halt. They had reached a door in the wall, and on the door was a number. The goblin guiding them got out of the cart, and Mrs. Weasley got out, as well. Sue and Lucy waited in the cart until Mrs. Weasley had retrieved some of the gold out of the vault.

Once again, they hurtled along at a high speed. Lucy thought the ride was exhilarating, yet she gripped tightly onto the side of the cart. Soon, they were stopping, this time at a different vault.

"This is yours, sweetie," Sue said as the goblin got out.

Lucy scrambled out of the cart, as well, and followed the goblin to the vault door. He inserted the key and then pulled the door open.

Lucy's mouth fell open. Inside were mounds of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts. There was more money there than she had ever seen before. "This is all mine?" she asked, unsure of what to think.

Sue reached into her purse and pulled out another bag. "This is all yours," she confirmed. "This belongs to you, as well." She opened the bag and showed Lucy yet more money inside of it. "Your father and I have been saving a little money for you ever since you came into our lives. We thought it would make more sense if you put it into your Gringotts vault with the rest of it."

"Thank you, Mom," Lucy said, feeling a little overwhelmed. She then pulled her own coin purse out of her bag and filled it up with a bunch of the money.

When she was finished, the goblin shut the door again and handed her the key. Then they all got back into the cart and shot off.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Soon, Lucy, Sue, and Mrs. Weasley were rejoining the other Weasley children and Dan outside of Gringotts. Then they began to shop for their school supplies. Mrs. Weasley opted to go into many of the second-hand shops for her children, which included a second-hand robes shop and a second-hand bookstore.

Finally, after a couple of hours of shopping for everything else, it was time for Lucy to get her wand.

"Well, you'll want to go to Ollivander's to get your wand, dear," Mrs. Weasley said kindly, noticing how excited Lucy was. "Come along this way. Ollivander's is just down the road."

The wand shop was rather small and shabby-looking. The Weasleys and Dan decided to wait outside while Sue accompanied Lucy inside.

It was dark and seemingly empty when they entered. Lucy looked around at the piles of wands, some of which reached as high as the ceiling.

"Good afternoon," a soft voice greeted. An old wizard had appeared from the back of the shop. He gazed at Lucy with an intense stare. "How may I assist you?"

"My daughter is looking to buy her first wand," Sue said, putting a comforting hand on Lucy's shoulder.

The man raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. "I don't get very many Americans in my shop," he explained simply. After a moment, he added, "My apologies; I've forgotten to introduce myself. I am Ollivander, and welcome to my wand shop. What is your name, young lady?"

"Lucy," Lucy replied. "Lucy Jones."

Ollivander nodded. "Very well, Miss Jones," he said. "If you would kindly hold out your wand arm, we can begin."

Lucy raised her right arm, and Ollivander pulled a tape measure out of his robe pocket. Then, with a wave of his wand, the tape measure began to measure Lucy's arm. Meanwhile, Ollivander went to a pile of wand boxes and started to shuffle through them.

A few minutes later, Ollivander turned back to Lucy and pointed his wand at the tape measure, which fell to the floor. He had a box in his hand, and he carefully picked up the wand from inside of it. Handing it over, he said, "Here you are, Miss Jones. Ash, twelve inches, with a unicorn tail hair."

Lucy took it from him.

"Go ahead and wave it," Ollivander added.

Lucy did as she was told, but the wandmaker snatched it out of her hand.

"No, no," he mumbled, looking for another wand. He took another box down and pulled out the wand, saying, "Blackthorn, nine-and-three-quarters inches, with a phoenix feather."

Lucy again took the wand and waved it.

Ollivander grabbed this one back, too. "Not to worry, dear, not to worry," he said. "The wand chooses the wizard—or, in your case, witch."

Lucy tried another five wands without any luck. Ollivander didn't look frustrated, but Lucy was starting to feel disheartened.

"Here we are," Ollivander said, plucking another box from a pile. He removed the wand and handed it to Lucy as he said, "Rowan, twelve-and-a-quarter inches, with a unicorn tail hair. Good for Charms work."

Lucy took the wand, and immediately a warm feeling shot up her arm. She waved it, and a jet of multicolored sparks came from the end.

"Well done, Miss Jones! Well done!" Ollivander said as Sue clapped for her daughter. He took the wand from Lucy and put it back in its box. "Yes, I'm sure you will perform excellent magic with this wand. Although I must admit, I am rather curious as to why you have come all the way from America to buy a wand here."

"My husband and I adopted Lucy when she was very young," Sue answered. "She was born here in England, and so her name was down for Hogwarts. She's starting school there in September."

"In that case, I wish you good luck, Miss Jones," Ollivander said with a smile as he handed over the box with Lucy's new wand in it. "That will be seven Galleons, please."

Lucy pulled out the coins and gave them to him. "Thank you," she added, and Ollivander bowed them from his shop.

"Did you find a winner, princess?" Dan asked as Lucy and Sue rejoined him and the Weasleys.

"Yes," Lucy replied with a grin. "It's rowan with a unicorn tail hair—twelve-and-a-quarter inches."

There were a few nods of approval among the group.

"So, is that all we needed?" Mrs. Weasley asked, looking between Dan and Sue.

"There is one more thing," Sue said. "We were thinking that Lucy might like to have a pet to take with her to school."

Lucy's mouth dropped open in excitement as she turned quickly to look at her mother. "Do you really mean it?" she asked.

"Well, your school list does say you can take an animal with you," Sue replied. "So how about it? Shall we stop at a pet store before we head back to the Weasleys'?"

"Yes!" Lucy exclaimed. "Yes, please!"

Mrs. Weasley led the way up the alley again, stopping outside of the pet store. Dan, Sue, and Lucy went into the shop while the Weasleys waited for them. They spent about fifteen minutes in the shop before they left again. Lucy was carrying a cat carrier with her brand new black cat curled up inside.

"I think that's everything," Dan announced.

Sue nodded in agreement.

"Very well," Mrs. Weasley said. "Come along, everyone."

 **~LJ:TH~**

When Lucy arrived back at the Burrow, she gathered up all her new things—including her new cat—and took them directly upstairs. She packed all her school things inside of her trunk, placing the box that held her wand on top.

Then she turned to the cat carrier, where she could hear a soft meowing. Lucy sat on the cot that had been made up for her and opened the carrier. The cat cautiously stuck her head out. Lucy held her hand out, and the cat sniffed at it.

"Hello, pretty girl," Lucy said in a low voice.

The cat took a few tentative steps out of the carrier, sniffing at the blanket on the cot.

"I suppose we ought to name you something," Lucy went on. "How about… Whiskers?" The cat continued to sniff around at Lucy, who shook her head. "Nah, you don't seem like a Whiskers," she said. "What about Mittens?"

The cat sat down in front of Lucy and looked up at her. Lucy frowned in thought before slowly reaching out and stroking the cat's head. The cat leaned into her hand.

"Mittens isn't quite right, either," Lucy said. "Hmm.… Wait! I've got the perfect name for you. Evie!"

The cat purred and crawled into Lucy's lap. She laid down, continuing to purr, as Lucy scratched her ears.

"I hope you like living with me, Evie," Lucy said, "and don't worry—the Weasleys are super nice. Then in September, we'll be going to Hogwarts."

Evie rolled onto her back, looking up at Lucy.

There was a knock on the bedroom door, and Lucy called, "Come in!"

Sue entered the room, beaming at her daughter. "Bonding already?" Sue asked. "What did you decide to name her?"

"Evie," Lucy replied. "She seems to like it."

"That's wonderful," Sue said. "It's time to wash up and come down to dinner, okay?"

"Okay, Mom, I'll be right down," Lucy said.

Sue left the room, and Lucy picked up Evie, who squirmed a bit before scrambling up onto Lucy's shoulders.

Lucy giggled. "Come on, Evie," she said. "Time for dinner!"

Evie meowed, and Lucy left the room, excited to spend her first night with the Weasleys.

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 ** _A/N: 1. The idea that there are multiple Floo Networks that are managed by the individual governing bodies is mentioned in Fantastic Beasts (according to the Harry Potter Wiki, at least). But I wanted a way for Lucy to get to Britain without having to Apparate, use a Portkey, or use some sort of Muggle/No-Maj transportation; so I came up with the idea that the governing bodies had a kind of international set up that would be very regulated._**

 ** _2\. I'm pretty sure that the American Wizarding community has its own money, but I've decided that Wizarding money is universal in this story. It just made things easier. Also, Gringotts is the main bank for the Wizarding world, as well, which is why Dan and Sue know what it is._**

 ** _3\. To figure out Lucy's wand, I went onto Pottermore (probably on the original site, when it still had all the interactive stuff on it) and made a new account just to take the wand finding quiz again. I answered the questions the way that she would, and ta-da._**

 ** _4\. Originally, Lucy's cat was a tuxedo kitty named Boots. I've changed her to a black cat, and therefore decided to change her name, as well._**


	4. 3: September First

_**To all of my American readers, Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you have a wonderful day however you celebrate (or don't). Also, it's my birthday! Happy birthday to me!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 3 – September First**

Lucy was crying. She couldn't help it; saying good-bye to her parents was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do. She had never been away from them. Since she had never attended school, she'd spent much of the past ten years at home with her parents. It finally hit her that once she left for Hogwarts, she'd be on her own.

"Don't cry, sweetheart," Sue cooed as she rubbed Lucy's back. "We'll see you next summer. If you want to come home for Christmas, you can do that, as well."

Lucy squeezed her mother close. "I'm sorry I'm crying," she replied. "I'm just going to miss you so much." She glanced at the Weasley family, who were huddled close together a few feet away, trying their best to blend in with the Muggles. "Don't worry about me, though. I'll be fine with the Weasleys."

Sue let her go and gave her a watery smile.

"We aren't worried," Dan said as he hugged Lucy next. "We know that you'll have a wonderful time. Just be sure to write to us every once in a while."

"Of course, I will," Lucy agreed.

With one last farewell, she pushed her trolley towards the Weasleys. Just before they entered the train station, Lucy turned and waved to her parents. Sue and Dan waved back, and the next moment they had disappeared. Lucy sighed and hurried after the Weasleys.

She had become quite good friends with the Weasleys in the past month. A lot of her time was spent with Ginny; neither girl had ever had a sister before, and they had both enjoyed having a sister-like figure around. Other times, Lucy had joined Ron, Fred, and George in flying contests around the Weasleys' land. Flying on a broomstick was one of the highlights of Lucy's summer. Since she had lived in a Muggle town before, she wasn't allowed to fly in case she was seen. The Weasleys lived in the country, so they could fly practically anywhere they wanted.

"Come on, everyone," Mrs. Weasley called as they started through the train station. "It's the same every year," she complained rather loudly as they walked. "Packed with Muggles, of course."

Ron and Lucy cringed, hoping none of said Muggles heard her talking.

"Now, what's the platform number?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Nine and three-quarters!" Ginny announced. She was walking with Mrs. Weasley and holding her hand. "Mum, can't I go, please?" she begged.

Lucy giggled softly.

"You're not old enough, Ginny. Be quiet," Mrs. Weasley admonished, sounding tired of Ginny's constant bothering. "All right, Percy—you go first." She nodded at Percy and then said to Lucy, "Watch Percy closely."

Percy walked briskly towards the barrier, and, just as it seemed he was about to crash, he continued right through the wall. Lucy nodded in understanding.

Suddenly, she felt as though they were being watched. She looked off to the side and saw a dark-haired boy observing them closely. On top of his trolley was a cage with an owl, and he didn't notice Lucy looking at him.

 _He must be waiting to get onto the platform_ , Lucy decided, and turned her attention back to the barrier, where Fred had just disappeared through the wall.

"Come on, Lucy!" George called, pushing his trolley forward.

Lucy laughed and followed him closely. She sucked in a breath of air as she got close to the wall, but just like others, she passed right through the barrier without crashing.

"Over here!" Fred called from a compartment in the middle of the train.

George told Lucy to follow him, and they both walked over to Fred. Together, they heaved George's and Lucy's trunks into a compartment, storing them away. Lucy kept her backpack slung over her shoulders and Evie's cat carrier in her hands.

"Don't worry about trying to get to your trunk when we get to Hogwarts," George explained. "They bring up the luggage separately. Come on—let's get down to the platform. Mum and Ginny should be waiting to say good-bye."

The three of them hopped out of the train and started looking through the steam clouds to find Mrs. Weasley.

"Oy, Fred! Lucy! C'mere and help!" George called suddenly.

Fred and Lucy turned, surprised. They hadn't even noticed that George had walked away.

Fred hurried over, and he and George helped a boy shove his trunk onto the train. With a lurch of recognition, Lucy realized that the boy was the one who had been watching them on the other side of the barrier. She followed the boys onto the train and watched as Fred, George, and the boy stowed the trunk into an empty compartment.

The boy looked up gratefully, pushing his hair out of his eyes. All three of them zeroed in on the scar on his forehead.

"What's that?" Fred questioned, pointing at the boy's forehead.

"Blimey," George said, gaping. "Are you—?"

"He _is_. Aren't you?" Lucy pressed.

"What?" the boy asked, seeming confused.

" _Harry Potter_ ," the three of them chorused, their voices laced with awe.

"Oh, him," the boy said. "I mean, yes, I am."

Lucy, Fred, and George stared at him for a moment, and he started to turn red.

"Fred! George! Lucy!" Mrs. Weasley's voice called from somewhere outside of the train.

"Coming!" the three of them called. They all flashed grins at Harry before leaping out the door and back onto the platform.

"Ron, you've got something on your nose," Mrs. Weasley commented as Lucy and the twins rejoined the rest of the family. She grabbed his face and started rubbing at his nose with a handkerchief.

Ron tried to jerk away from her but to no avail. Lucy and Ginny started laughing.

"Mum— _Geroff_ ," Ron protested before finally wiggling out of her grasp.

"Aw, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nose?" Fred teased, causing Lucy and Ginny to laugh harder.

"Shut up," Ron muttered darkly at all of them, his face bright red.

Lucy bit her lip, trying to control her laughter.

"Where's Percy?" Mrs. Weasley asked, paying no attention to what her kids were laughing at.

"He's coming now."

They turned to see Percy striding towards them with his robes already on. His prefect badge gleamed in the sunlight, and he had his chest thrust out, so people would notice it.

"Can't stay long, Mother," he said, rather pompously. Lucy thought he was trying too hard to be mature; he was only fifteen years old, after all. "I'm up front," Percy explained. "The prefects have got two compartments to themselves—"

"Oh, are you a _prefect_ , Percy?" Fred couldn't help but interrupt, feigning surprise. "You should have said something! We had no idea."

"Hang on, I think I remember him saying something about it," George pretended to muse. "Once—"

"Or twice—"

"A minute—"

"All summer—"

"Oh, shut up," Percy snapped.

Lucy and Ginny laughed again, and Ron joined in this time.

"How come Percy gets new robes, anyway?" George asked on a more serious note.

"Because he's a _prefect_ ," Mrs. Weasley pressed, sounding proud of her son. "All right, dear—well, have a good term," she said to Percy. "Send me an owl when you get there." She kissed Percy on the cheek, and he left, his chest still sticking out.

Mrs. Weasley turned to the twins next and said, "Now, you two—this year, you _behave_ yourselves. If I get one more owl telling me you've—you've blown up a toilet or—"

"Blown up a toilet?" George repeated. "We've never blown up a toilet."

"Great idea, though," Fred added. "Thanks, Mum."

"It's _not funny_ ," Mrs. Weasley snapped. "And look after Ron and Lucy, now, will you?"

"Don't worry. Ickle Ronniekins is safe with us."

"Shut up!" Ron insisted. The tips of his ears turned pink.

"Hey, Mum, guess what? Guess who we just met on the train?" Fred asked. "You know that black-haired boy who was near us in the station? Know who he is?"

Apparently, Lucy hadn't been the only one to notice him when they were back in the station.

"Who?" Mrs. Weasley sighed, sounding as though she was waiting for some sort of joke.

" _Harry Potter!_ " Lucy joined the twins in saying his name, hoping to convince Mrs. Weasley that they were telling the truth.

"Oh, Mum, can I go on the train and see him, Mum?" Ginny started begging again, standing on her toes to see if she could find him anywhere. "Oh, please—"

"You've already seen him, Ginny, and the poor boy isn't something you ogle at in a zoo," Mrs. Weasley scolded. "Is he really, Fred? How do you know?"

"Asked him. Saw his scar. It's really there—like lightning."

"Poor _dear_ —no wonder he was alone. I wondered," Mrs. Weasley said. "He was ever so polite when he asked how to get onto the platform."

"Never mind that," Fred said impatiently. "Do you think he remembers what You-Know-Who looks like?"

Lucy felt her eyes widen as she and Ron exchanged a look of disbelief.

Mrs. Weasley glared at him. "I forbid you to ask him, Fred," she commanded. "No, don't you _dare_. As though he needs reminding of that on his first day of school!"

"All right, keep your hairnet on."

The train whistle sounded.

"Hurry up!" Mrs. Weasley said, suddenly frantic, and Lucy hugged Ginny hard before she jumped up onto the train with Ron, Fred, and George.

The three boys leaned out the window to kiss their mother good-bye. Mrs. Weasley demanded on giving Lucy a kiss, too, stating, "You're practically like a daughter to me now." Ginny started crying.

"Don't, Ginny; we'll send you loads of owls," Fred said soothingly.

"We'll send you a Hogwarts toilet seat," George amended, grinning widely.

Lucy laughed.

" _George!_ " Mrs. Weasley shouted, to which George added quickly, "Only joking, Mum."

The train began moving, and Lucy almost wanted to reach out and pull Ginny into the train with her. _Oh, well,_ Lucy thought. _She'll be with us next year_.

Ginny started chasing the train, laughing and crying at the same time, but stopped at the edge of the platform when it was moving too fast. She waved after them, and Lucy waved back, not altogether sure if Ginny could see her.

Then she turned away from the window, looking over to see only Ron standing behind her. Fred and George had already wandered away.

"C'mon—let's find somewhere to sit," Ron suggested as the train began to pick up speed. Lucy nodded, and together they walked along the hallway looking for an empty—or mostly empty—compartment to sit in.

A few minutes later, Lucy stopped Ron by hissing his name at him. He paused, looking questioningly at her, and she motioned to the next compartment. "This is where Harry Potter is sitting," she explained.

The two of them glanced inside, and, after seeing nobody else inside but Harry, Ron slid the door open. He stepped into the compartment, and Lucy followed him.

"Anyone sitting here?" Ron asked, pointing to the seats opposite of Harry. "Everywhere else we've looked is full."

Harry shook his head, glancing to Lucy, and a look of recognition flitted across his face.

Lucy and Ron settled into their seats. Harry watched both curiously as Ron glanced at him and then quickly away. Lucy was glad she had Evie to distract her.

"Hey, Ron, Lucy." Fred and George were standing in the doorway. "Listen, we're going down the middle of the train—Lee Jordan's got a giant tarantula down there."

"Right," Ron mumbled, visibly paling at the mention of the tarantula. He had told Lucy that summer that he hated spiders.

Lucy nodded to the twins.

"Harry," said George, "did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother, and Lucy Jones, who was living with us this summer. See you later, then."

"'Bye," the three younger kids replied.

Fred and George left, shutting the door behind them.

"Are you really Harry Potter?" Ron blurted out. He looked slightly guilty at his question but didn't back down.

Harry nodded.

"Oh—well, I thought it might be one of Fred's and George's jokes," said Ron.

Lucy glared at him; she had seen Harry, too.

"And have you really got—you know…" Ron pointed to Harry's forehead.

Harry chuckled, pushing his hair back to show them his scar.

Ron stared, gaping. "So that's where You-Know-Who—?"

Yes," Harry answered, "but I can't remember it."

"Nothing?" Ron said eagerly.

"Well—I remember a lot of green light, but nothing else."

"Wow," Ron said. He continued to stare at Harry, and Lucy nudged him in the side with her elbow. He quickly turned to look out of the window again.

Lucy shook her head and opened the carrier to let Evie get out and stretch her legs.

Harry broke the silence a few minutes later when he asked Ron, "Are all your family wizards?"

"Er—yes, I think so," said Ron.

He continued to discuss his family with Harry while Lucy listened, scratching Evie's head. When Ron pulled his pet rat Scabbers out of his pocket, Evie leaned over to sniff him and then went back to being pampered.

"How about you?" Harry asked, turning to Lucy. "What's your family like?"

"I don't know much about my parents," Lucy replied. "They died when I was very little; a year old, I think I was. I was adopted by a magical family in America, so I've lived there almost my whole life.… Until now, of course."

"I'm sorry about your parents," Harry said.

"I'm sorry about _yours_ ," Lucy replied.

Harry looked away, glancing at Scabbers. Then he told Ron about not having any money before, so it wasn't a big deal if Ron couldn't afford an owl. This progressed into him telling Ron and Lucy about the Dursleys, the only living relatives of his mother.

"—and until Hagrid told me, I didn't know anything about being a wizard, my parents, or Voldemort—"

Ron gasped, and Lucy let out a small squeak.

"What?" Harry asked, confused at their reactions.

" _You said You-Know-Who's name!_ " said Ron, sounding both shocked and impressed. "I'd have thought you, of all people—"

"I'm not trying to be _brave_ or anything, saying the name," said Harry defensively. "I just never knew you shouldn't. See what I mean? I've got loads to learn.… I bet—I bet I'm the worst in the class."

"You won't be," Lucy said immediately with a shake of her head.

"There are loads of people who come from Muggle families, and they learn quick enough," Ron added.

Harry frowned but didn't reply.

 **~LJ:TH~**

There was silence for a while after that. Harry and Ron both gazed out the window, watching as the scenery passed by the train. Lucy went back to petting Evie.

Around lunchtime, a smiling woman broke their silence by opening the compartment door and asking, "Anything off the cart, dears?"

Harry immediately leapt to his feet, followed closely by Lucy. Ron blushed and muttered about having brought sandwiches.

The other two went out into the corridor. Lucy watched in wide-eyed amazement as Harry bought a little of everything and handed over quite a bit of gold to pay for it. Lucy herself picked out a Pumpkin Pasty and a couple of Chocolate Frogs before following Harry back inside.

"Hungry, are you?" Ron asked Harry as he dumped his sweets onto the seat.

Harry replied, "Starving!" He opened a Pumpkin Pasty and tasted it.

Lucy, in the meantime, tossed Ron a Chocolate Frog. He caught it and then pulled out the sandwiches that Mrs. Weasley packed. Opening them, he grimaced.

"She always forgets I don't like corned beef," he muttered.

"Swap you for one of these," Harry piped up, holding up a treat. "Go on—"

"You don't want this. It's all dry," Ron replied. "She hasn't got much time, you know, with five of us. Six, if you count Lucy."

Lucy smirked at him.

"Go on, have a pasty," Harry urged. "Do you want something, Lucy? A Cauldron Cake?"

Lucy shrugged before nodding enthusiastically. She smiled and thanked him as he passed the cake over to her.

The three of them started eating through Harry's candy, and Lucy and Ron took turns explaining to him what each of them were.

"What are these?" Harry asked, holding up a pack of Chocolate Frogs. "They're not _really_ frogs, are they?"

Lucy chuckled.

"No," Ron replied, "but see what the card is. I'm missing Agrippa."

"What?" Harry asked blankly, looking to Lucy for clarification.

"Chocolate Frogs have cards inside of the package to collect," Lucy described. "They have famous witches and wizards on them."

"I've got about five hundred, but I haven't got Agrippa or Ptolemy," Ron explained.

Harry hurried to unwrap the Chocolate Frog, and he pulled the card out. He examined it for a few seconds before announcing, "So _this_ is Dumbledore!"

"Don't tell me you've never heard of Dumbledore!" said Ron. "Can I have a frog? I might get Agrippa—thanks," he added as Harry passed one over.

"Dumbledore's really famous in the Wizarding world," Lucy explained to Harry as he read the card he'd unwrapped. "One of the most powerful wizards ever, if not _the_ most powerful. Even all the way in America we know of him."

Harry nodded and turned the card back over. "He's gone!" he gasped, holding up the front of the card for Lucy and Ron to see.

"Well, you can't expect him to hang around all day," said Ron absently. "He'll be back. No, I've got Morgana again, and I've got about six of her.… Do you want it? You can start collecting." He offered the card to Harry and then glanced longingly at the pile of still-wrapped Chocolate Frogs.

"Help yourself," Harry said. "But you know, in the Muggle world, people just stay put in photos."

"Do they?" Ron asked. "What, they don't move at all? _Weird_!"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Don't mind him," she advised Harry. "Ron doesn't have that much experience in the Muggle world."

Harry shrugged and looked back at Dumbledore's card just in time to see the occupant reenter the picture.

The three kids began opening the frogs to see which cards they'd get, and Lucy noticed that Harry was extremely interested in all the cards he'd now collected. Finally, he turned away to open a bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

"You want to be careful with those," Ron warned Harry.

Lucy giggled. "When they say every flavor, they _mean_ every flavor," she explained to Harry.

"You know, you get all the ordinary ones like chocolate, peppermint, and marmalade," Ron continued, "but then you can get spinach, liver, and tripe. George reckons he had a bogey-flavored one once."

"Ew," Lucy said under her breath.

Ron, meanwhile, picked up a green bean and bit into the corner of it carefully. "Bleaaargh—see? Sprouts."

The three looked at each other before diving for the beans. Soon they were daring each other to try ones the others didn't want to eat, which proved to be very funny when one of them bit into a bean that was not so nice.

 **~LJ:TH~**

A short while later, there was a knock on the compartment door. A boy entered, his face screwed up as though he was trying not to cry.

"Sorry," he said shakily, "but you haven't seen a toad at all, have you?"

All three of them shook their heads.

"I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!" the boy wailed.

"He'll turn up," said Harry encouragingly, and Lucy nodded in agreement.

"Yes," the boy said, not sounding optimistic at all. "Well, if you see him…" He left the compartment, shutting the door behind him.

"Don't know why he's so bothered," said Ron. "If I'd brought a toad, I'd lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can't talk." He looked down at Scabbers, who was sleeping on his leg.

"Don't be so hard on him," Lucy said.

"Scabbers or the boy?" Ron shot back.

Lucy thought for a moment before replying, "Both."

Ron shook his head and looked back at the rat. "He might have died, and you wouldn't know the difference," he said. "I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn't work." Lucy snorted in laughter, and Ron glared at her before adding to Harry, "I'll show you, look…" He pulled out a very old looking wand. "Unicorn hair's nearly poking out. Anyway—" He raised his arm when the door opened once more.

A girl with bushy brown hair and already dressed in her Hogwarts robes came in, dragging the toadless boy with her. "Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one," she said. She glanced around at the three of them.

"We've already told him we haven't seen it," Ron replied, sounding annoyed.

"Ron!" Lucy said reproachfully. "He's right there." She turned to Neville and replied, "Sorry, we still haven't seen him."

Neville nodded, looking slightly embarrassed.

The girl, on the other hand, was staring at the wand in Ron's hand. "Oh, are you doing magic?" she asked, sounding intrigued. "Let's see it, then." She sat down next to Harry and watched Ron expectantly.

"Er—all right." He cleared his throat and pointed his wand at Scabbers. "Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow."

He waved the wand, but nothing seemed to happen. Scabbers didn't even move.

"Are you sure that's a real spell?" the girl demanded. "Well, it's not very good, is it? I've tried a few simple spells just for practice, and it's all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all. It was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course. I mean, it's the very best school of witchcraft there is, I've heard. I've learned all our course books by heart, of course. I just hope it will be enough—I'm Hermione Granger, by the way. Who are you?"

The boys both looked stunned, perhaps at the speed that Hermione had said her speech. Lucy giggled at their expressions.

"I'm Lucy Jones," she introduced herself, and Hermione smiled at her.

"I'm Ron Weasley," Ron muttered—Lucy had a suspicion that he didn't like Hermione very much.

"Harry Potter," Harry said last.

"Are you really?" Hermione asked. "I know all about you, of course—I got a few extra books for background reading, and you're in _Modern Magical History_ , _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts,_ and _Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century_."

"Am I?" Harry asked faintly.

"Goodness, didn't you know? I'd have found out everything I could if it was me," Hermione replied. "Do any of you know what house you'll be in? I've been asking around, and I hope I'm in Gryffindor. It sounds by far the best; I heard Dumbledore himself was in it, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad.… Anyway, we'd better go and look for Neville's toad. You had better change, you know. I expect we'll be there soon."

With that, she stood and swept out of the compartment, and Neville followed her glumly.

"Whatever house I'm in, I hope she's not," said Ron darkly.

"Ron," Lucy said with warning in her tone. "You don't even know her."

Ron scowled and put his wand away. "Stupid spell—George gave it to me. Bet he knew it was a dud," he muttered.

Lucy shrugged and nodded. In fact, she knew it was a dud; George had told her so before telling Ron about it.

"Which house are your brothers in?" Harry asked curiously.

"Gryffindor," Ron replied. "Mum and Dad were in it, too. I don't know what they'll say if I'm not. I don't suppose Ravenclaw _would_ be too bad, but imagine if they put me in Slytherin."

"They won't put you in Slytherin," Lucy said encouragingly.

"That's the house Vol—I mean, You-Know-Who was in?" Harry asked, almost saying the name out loud again.

"Yeah," Ron said. He leaned back in his seat, looking deflated.

"You know, I think the ends of Scabbers's whiskers are a bit lighter," Harry said encouragingly.

Lucy shook her head, smirking.

"So, what do your older brothers do now that they've left, anyway?" Harry asked.

"Charlie's in Romania studying dragons, and Bill's in Africa doing something for Gringotts," said Ron. "Did you hear about Gringotts? It's been all over the _Daily Prophet_ , but I don't suppose you get that with the Muggles—someone tried to rob a high security vault."

"Really?" Harry asked, sounding surprised. "What's happened to them?"

"Nothing. That's why it's such big news," Ron explained. "They haven't been caught. My dad says it must've been a powerful Dark wizard to get 'round Gringotts, but they don't think they took anything. That's what's odd. 'Course, everyone gets scared when something like this happens in case You-Know-Who's behind it."

There was silence for a moment while the three of them thought about the break in.

"What's your Quidditch team?" Ron asked Harry suddenly.

"Er—I don't know any," Harry admitted.

"What? Oh, you wait; it's the best game in the world!" Ron began before launching into an explanation of the game.

Lucy tuned the boys out, scratching Evie's ears and looking out the window over Ron's back. It was fairly dark out, and she guessed that they must be very close to the school now. Excitement bubbled in her stomach, and she grinned.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Ron had been explaining Quidditch to Harry for quite a while before the compartment door rattled open again. Lucy turned to it with a sigh. _Who now?_

Three boys came in. One was small and pale-faced, and the other two were larger and glaring at the three of them still sitting in their seats. The smaller boy, who was being flanked by the two larger ones, was looking at Harry curiously.

"Is it true?" he asked in a drawling voice. "They're saying all down the train that Harry Potter's in this compartment. So, it's you, is it?"

"Yes," Harry confirmed.

Lucy noticed he was nervously eyeing the other boys.

"Oh, this is Crabbe, and this is Goyle," said the leader, waving a hand lazily behind him when he noticed Harry was looking at them. "And _my_ name's Malfoy—Draco Malfoy."

Ron coughed, but it sounded as though he was covering a laugh.

Malfoy looked over at him and spat, "Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask who _you_ are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford." Then Malfoy glanced over at Lucy, who glared right back at him. He gave her a calculating look before he finally turned back to Harry.

"You'll soon find out some Wizarding families are much better than others, Potter," he said. "You don't want to go making friends with the _wrong_ sort. I can help you there." He held out his hand to Harry, but Harry didn't take it.

"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks," he replied coldly.

Lucy and Ron smirked at Malfoy, whose cheeks flushed pink.

"I'd be careful if I were you, Potter," he said slowly. "Unless you're a bit politer, you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riffraff like the Weasleys and that Hagrid, and it'll rub off on you."

Harry and Ron stood up, and Lucy gasped out, "No, don't—!"

"Say that again," Ron said to Malfoy.

"Oh, you're going to fight us, are you?" Malfoy sneered.

"Unless you get out now," Harry replied hotly.

Lucy shook her head at them, but they continued to ignore her.

"But we don't feel like leaving, do we, boys?" Malfoy said. "We've eaten all our food, and you still seem to have some."

Goyle nodded greedily, reaching for a Chocolate Frog. Ron moved to stop him, but before he could do anything, Goyle lurched backwards, yelling loudly. Scabbers was hanging off his finger, biting into Goyle's beefy hand. Crabbe and Malfoy backed away to the door. Goyle swung his hand around until Scabbers flew off and hit the window. The three boys high-tailed it out of the compartment, and Ron hurried to pick up Scabbers.

"What _has_ been going on?" Hermione was back. She looked questioningly at all three of them.

"I think he's been knocked out," Ron said, looking closely at his rat. "No—I don't believe it—he's gone back to sleep."

Lucy looked for herself, and sure enough, Scabbers was sleeping again.

"You've met Malfoy before?" Ron asked Harry.

Harry hurriedly explained how he had met Malfoy in Diagon Alley and what he'd said.

"I've heard of his family," Ron said. "They were some of the first to come back to our side after You-Know-Who disappeared—said they'd been bewitched. My dad doesn't believe it. He says Malfoy's father didn't need an excuse to go over to the Dark side." He looked over at Hermione and added, "Can we help you with something?"

"Ron!" Lucy snapped. She was getting annoyed at his attitude towards Hermione.

Hermione glanced at Lucy thankfully and then said, "You'd better hurry up and put your robes on. I've just been up to the front to ask the conductor, and he says we're nearly there. You haven't been fighting, have you? You'll be in trouble before we even get there!"

"Scabbers has been fighting, not us," Ron replied, scowling deeply. "Would you mind leaving while we change?"

"All right—I only came in here because people outside are behaving very childishly, racing up and down the corridors," said Hermione, sounding slightly hurt. "You've got dirt on your nose, by the way. Did you know?" She turned to leave with Ron glaring at her.

"Wait up, Hermione!" Lucy called, standing up. She put Evie in her carrier and closed it up. "I'll come with you; I just need to change into my robes." She shot Ron a glare back and said to the boys, "I'll see you two when we get off the train, yeah?"

Ron and Harry nodded, and Lucy grabbed her backpack and left with Hermione.

"I'm sorry about Ron," Lucy started. "I don't know what's crawled up his butt, but he's usually not like that."

"Oh, it's all right," Hermione replied. "Are you American? You have quite a funny accent, if you don't mind me saying."

Lucy chuckled. "Yeah, I'm American," she answered. "My parents are from England, but I was taken away from them for safety. They had some of You-Know-Who's followers after them, I guess. They were killed not very long after I left. I was sent to America, and I've lived there almost my whole life."

Hermione looked at her sympathetically, and Lucy shrugged. They continued down to bathroom at the end of the corridor. Lucy slipped inside to pull her robes on while Hermione waited.

"So, what do your parents do in the Muggle world, then?" Lucy asked as she rejoined Hermione back in the train corridor.

"They're dentists," she replied. "They take care of people's teeth."

She looked like she was going to say more when a voice echoed throughout the train, "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train. It will be taken to the school separately."

Lucy glanced at Hermione, biting her lip to keep her squeal of excitement inside. They stood in the corridor together, watching out the window as the train finally began to slow down. Lucy bounced up and down on the balls of her feet; she was finally arriving at school!

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: This is the first chapter where you can see what I mean by dialogue being lifted directly from the book. If you really don't like it, then I highly suggest that you stop reading this series. As for Lucy's lines, sometimes I take them away from other characters to give to her, but I tried hard to make sure that I didn't take away anything that was important to the character who originally said it, if that makes sense.**_

 _ **If you ready my original series, I think I had this chapter split into two. During the rewrite/editing, I ended up putting them together.**_


	5. 4: The Sorting Ceremony

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 4 – The Sorting Ceremony**

As soon as the train came to a complete stop, Lucy and Hermione jumped out onto the platform. The air was chilly, and there was a slight breeze. The girls pulled their robes tighter around themselves for warmth.

Somewhere up ahead, Lucy saw a lamp bobbing high above the students' heads and heard a bellowing voice calling, "Firs'-years! Firs'-years, over here!"

The girls hurried over to see a giant man waving his hand in the air.

"All right there, Harry?" the giant asked.

Lucy turned and found Harry standing nearby with Ron. She pushed through the crowd of students to stand next to them, pulling Hermione with her.

"C'mon, follow me—any more firs'-years? Mind yer step, now! Firs'-years, follow me!"

The first-years did as the man asked, sticking close to him.

"Who is this?" Lucy asked Harry curiously.

"Hagrid. He's the one I was telling you and Ron about on the train," Harry replied. "He's the gamekeeper here."

Lucy nodded.

They continued to follow Hagrid, making their way through some very thick trees. Most of the first-years were quiet, but there were some whispers amongst the group.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sigh' o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder eventually. "It's jus' 'round this bend here."

True to Hagrid's word, as they turned the corner, almost every student let out a loud, "Ooooh!" The path they had been following opened up at the edge of a large, dark lake. Across it, on top of a cliff, was a huge castle with glittering windows: Hogwarts.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a group of boats bobbing in the water near the shore.

Lucy and Hermione followed Harry and Ron into a boat and settled down onto the seats.

"Everyone in?" Hagrid shouted, who was in a boat by himself. "Right then—FORWARD!"

With that, the boats smoothly glided forward at the same time. Lucy heard Harry gasp from in front of her, and she giggled. Nobody said much, as they were all looking up at the castle in awe.

"Heads down!" Hagrid warned as the boats came to the cliff the castle was sitting on.

They all bent down as they were told, and the boats led them through an ivy curtain that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. The boats took them through a dark tunnel that seemed like it was under the castle itself.

Then they reached another shore, this one full of pebbles. The first-years scrambled out of the boats and huddled together as Hagrid double-checked that they hadn't left anything behind.

"Oy, you there! Is this yer toad?" Hagrid called when he reached the boat Neville had been in.

"Trevor!" Neville cried, holding his hands out.

When Hagrid was finished checking the boats, the first-years followed him up a slightly steep passageway, which opened up to green grass right in front of the castle. Hagrid led them up the stone steps, and the first-years crowded around the oak door.

"Everyone here? You there, still got yer toad?" Hagrid raised his fist and knocked three times on the castle door.

It swung open immediately. There stood a dark-haired witch who was wearing emerald green robes. She was older looking and had a stern expression on her face.

"The firs'-years, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid presented.

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." She proceeded to pull the door open wider.

The first-years entered the stone entrance hall. Flaming torches flickered against the walls, and directly across from the front doors was a flight of large marble stairs. Behind a set of double doors on their right, the first-years could hear hundreds of voices; that must have been the rest of the school.

Professor McGonagall led them away from this door and instead into an empty chamber off the hall.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall after they had all entered the room. "The start-of-term feast will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting Ceremony is very important, because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history, and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you house points, while any rule-breaking will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup—a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." She glanced over at Neville's cloak and Ron's smudged nose. "I shall return when we are ready for you," she finished. "Please wait quietly."

She left the chamber, and the first-years broke out into nervous chatter.

"How exactly do they sort us into houses?" Harry asked Ron.

"Some sort of test, I think," Ron answered. "Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."

Lucy snorted with laughter. Of _course_ they had told Ron that; they explained to Lucy what really happened, but they had begged her to not tell Ron. Ron gave her a questioning look, but she waved him off. Instead, she looked around the chamber in interest.

All of a sudden, most of the first-years gasped, and a couple even screamed. About twenty ghosts had just entered the room by floating through the walls. They were mostly transparent and seemed to be arguing about something.

"Forgive and forget, I say! We ought to give him a second chance—"

"My dear Friar, haven't we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name, and you know, he's not really even a ghost—I say, what are you all doing here?" A ghost in tights had just looked down to see the first-years huddled together below him.

When nobody answered, the first ghost who had spoken said, "New students! About to be sorted, I suppose?" Some people in the crowd nodded, and the Friar continued, "Hope to see you in Hufflepuff! My old house, you know."

"Move along now." Professor McGonagall was back. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."

One by one, the ghosts drifted out of the room through one of the walls.

"Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall continued to the first-years, "and follow me."

The students did as she asked and followed Professor McGonagall back through the entrance hall and towards the double doors, where they could hear the voices again. They walked through them and entered the Great Hall.

Lucy looked around, amazed at the beauty of the hall. Four long tables followed the length of the room, with one long table at the front where the staff were sitting. In the middle of the high table sat Albus Dumbledore, who was watching the first-years come forward with great interest.

Professor McGonagall led the first-years passed the tables full of older students, who were watching the new group curiously. Lucy felt slightly self-conscious having to walk in front of everyone.

In front of the top table, Professor McGonagall signaled for the group to stop.

Lucy glanced up at the ceiling, and Hermione leaned over and whispered in her ear, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in _Hogwarts, a History_." Lucy felt her eyebrows raise; it was hard to believe that there was a ceiling at all.

Ahead of them, Professor McGonagall set down a four-legged stool. On top of the stool she placed an old pointed hat.

Lucy looked around her fellow students, and many of them looked either apprehensive or confused. When Lucy turned her head back to the hat, she saw that a rip at the brim had opened wide. Then the hat began to sing.

Lucy's eyes swept over the other first-years again, and she noticed that most were enraptured by the singing hat. Then she glanced over her shoulder and saw, between a few people's heads, Fred and George sitting at the table on the far left-hand side of the hall. When they saw her looking, they both winked, and she stuck her tongue out back at them. She whipped her head around to face front just as the hat finished its song.

The student body and faculty applauded as soon as it was done.

"So, we've just got to try on the hat!" Lucy heard Ron whisper to Harry. "I'll kill Fred; he was going on about wrestling a troll."

Lucy couldn't help the giggle that escaped her, and both boys shot her a look.

"Did you know about the hat?" Ron asked quietly.

"Yes, Fred and George decided to tell me the truth," Lucy replied.

Ron scowled, and both he and Harry looked back up front.

Professor McGonagall had stepped up next to the stool. "When I call your name," she began, holding up a large roll of parchment, "you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbott, Hannah!"

Lucy watched as students began to be sorted. There were three shouts of "HUFFLEPUFF!" followed by "RAVENCLAW!" before Lucy began to lose count. She glanced over at Harry, who looked a bit queasy, and Ron, who was getting paler by the minute. Next to her, Hermione was starting to fidget and whisper to herself.

"Granger, Hermione!" Professor McGonagall eventually called.

Smiling, Hermione practically ran up to the stool and pulled the hat onto her head eagerly. A few minutes ticked by as Hermione waited to see which house she would be put into.

"GRYFFINDOR!" was the hat's ultimate call.

Lucy heard Ron groan, and she elbowed him from behind. She was getting a little nervous herself; she couldn't be too far after Hermione.

Sure enough, after three more students (two girls who went to Slytherin and a boy who was sorted into Hufflepuff), Professor McGonagall announced, "Jones, Lucy!"

Lucy stepped up nervously but was ready to hear what the hat had to say. She slid the hat on and sat on the stool. She sat there for barely a second before a little voice in her ear started speaking.

"Hmm.… I like your mind very much," it said.

Lucy was bewildered for a moment before realizing that it was the hat that was whispering to her.

"Determination. Courage. Loyalty. Talent," the hat continued. "Well, well… I supposed I shouldn't be surprised, seeing who your parents were.…"

Lucy had to stifle a gasp. The hat seemed to know more about her than she did. She wondered if she could somehow ask the hat who her parents had been, although she also felt foolish at thinking about asking a hat anything.

"Let's see…" the hat continued. "Where shall I put you? Oh, I know.…" Then, out loud for all the school to hear, the hat announced, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Lucy smiled, biting down on her lip to stop from squealing. The rest of the school clapped for her, just as they had done for everyone before her. Lucy took the hat off, placed it back on the stool, and scurried off to sit next to Hermione and across from the Weasley twins, both of whom gave her a high five.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here!" Hermione said, giving Lucy a squeeze.

Lucy gave Hermione a one-armed hug back and then turned her attention back to the sorting.

After two more students—a girl who was put into Hufflepuff, and a girl who was now in Ravenclaw—Neville was called forward. He sat on the stool for longer than Hermione had. When the hat finally called out, "GRYFFINDOR!" for him, he ran off with it still on and had to turn around and give it to the next girl in line. When he reached the table, he sat down next to Fred, looking very embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it, Neville," Hermione said soothingly.

The three of them looked back to the stool and watched as Ernest Macmillan was announced for Hufflepuff. Then "Malfoy, Draco!" was called next. Lucy watched with disgust as the hat called, "SLYTHERIN!" as soon as it touched Malfoy's head.

"Malfoy, huh?" George said in a low voice as the next boy was called up to the hat. "I think I've heard that name before.…"

"On the train, Ron told me and Harry about him," Lucy said, leaning across the table. "He said that Malfoy's dad was right in You-Know-Who's inner circle."

George nodded, and he and his twin looked over their shoulders at the Slytherin table as the rest of the school applauded for the boy who'd just been sorted into Hufflepuff.

"Potter, Harry!" Professor McGonagall finally called.

A hush fell over the crowd for a second before whispers broke out among the sitting students. Lucy noticed all the students craning their necks to get a look at Harry, who was walking nervously over to the stool. He pulled the hat on, and it fell over his eyes, just like it had for almost everyone else. The crowd continue to titter quietly as Harry sat, waiting for the hat to announce its decision. Then—

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat shouted.

All of the Gryffindors screamed and cheered, and George and Fred started chanting at the top of their lungs, "We got Potter! We got Potter!"

Harry came over to the table, sitting next to Lucy and across from the ghost with the tights the first-years had seen in the side chamber. The ghost reached over and patted Harry's arm. Harry shivered and then turned to look up at the high table. Hagrid gave him a thumbs up.

"Well done, Harry," Lucy whispered to him.

Harry looked at her, flushing slightly. "I didn't do much," he mumbled.

Lucy smiled and shrugged.

Seven more students (Hufflepuff, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Ravenclaw) were called before Professor McGonagall said, "Weasley, Ronald!"

Ron stumbled up to the stool, looking fairly green. He didn't have to worry, though; the hat was only on his head for a second or two before saying, "GRYFFINDOR!" Ron quickly took off the hat and walked over to the table.

"Well done, Ron—excellent," said Percy as Ron reached the table and collapsed into the seat beside Harry.

"Whitlock, Jeremy!" was the next boy called, bringing Lucy's attention back to the sorting.

She watched the boy curiously. He gingerly pulled the hat onto his head and sat, twisting his fingers together in his lap.

After a few moments, the hat called, "SLYTHERIN!" The boy replaced the hat on the stool and slowly walked over to the Slytherin table, which was two tables down from the Gryffindor one. Lucy watched as he sat down, his head hanging low, seeming dejected. After a second, he shook his head and looked back up at last student left to be sorted. Lucy tore her eyes away to watch as a boy named Blaise Zabini sat down on the stool.

The sorting came to an end as the boy was placed into Slytherin, as well. Professor McGonagall took the Sorting Hat out of the Great Hall through a door behind the high table. There were murmurs around the hall until Professor McGonagall returned and took her place at the staff table.

Albus Dumbledore stood up next, and when he did, the students almost immediately quieted down. The headmaster opened his arms wide, beaming at all of them.

"Welcome!" he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our feast, I would like to say a few words, and here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!" He smiled and finished, "Thank you!"

As he sat down, most of the students clapped and cheered. The first-years joined in hesitantly. Lucy couldn't help but laugh.

"Is he—a bit mad?" Harry asked Percy across the table.

Lucy looked over at Percy expectantly.

"Mad?" Percy repeated. "He's a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes. Potatoes, Harry?"

As he was talking, the dishes on the table had been filled with food that seemed to come from nowhere. Harry's mouth dropped, and Lucy smiled happily. The two of them began to pile food onto their plates. Hermione gave them a slightly reproving look; Ron was already shoveling potatoes and pork chops into his mouth.

"That does look good," the ghost mentioned after a while. He sadly watched them eat.

Harry motioned to the food and asked, "Can't you—?"

"I haven't eaten for nearly four hundred years," the ghost replied. "I don't need to, of course, but one does miss it." There was a pause, and the ghost continued, "I don't think I've introduced myself? Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."

"I know who you are!" Ron piped up between swallows of food. "My brothers told me about you—you're Nearly Headless Nick!"

Lucy snorted in laughter, almost spitting potatoes out of her mouth.

The ghost started, "I would _prefer_ you to call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy—"

" _Nearly_ Headless? How can you be _nearly_ headless?" a first-year boy named Seamus Finnigan asked from down the table.

Sir Nicholas looked annoyed. "Like _this_." He reached up and pulled on his left ear. His head popped off his neck and fell onto his shoulder, like it had been hinged there.

Lucy, Harry, and Ron all leaned back, stunned. It looked like someone had tried to behead him but hadn't finished the job.

Nick looked smug at the expressions on their faces and then flipped his head back onto his shoulders before continuing, "So—new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the house championship this year. Gryffindor has never gone so long without winning. Slytherin has won the cup six years in a row! The Bloody Baron's becoming almost unbearable—he's the Slytherin ghost."

Lucy, Ron, and Harry all looked over at the Slytherin table and saw a ghost sitting there. His robes were stained with silver blood.

"Look who he's sitting next to," Lucy said, nudging Harry's shoulder.

Malfoy, looking unhappy, was seated next to the ghost. Lucy and Harry sniggered.

"How did he get covered in blood?" questioned Seamus, who had turned to look, as well.

"I've never asked," Nearly Headless Nick answered airily.

Harry looked at Lucy, and Lucy shrugged. "Too scared," she mouthed, and the two of them collapsed in a fit of giggles.

 **~LJ:TH~**

When the main course had been finished, the remaining food disappeared from the plates. They were just as clean and sparkling as they had been before the meal had started. After a moment, the desserts appeared next.

As the Gryffindors ate, someone brought up the topic of families.

"I'm half-and-half," Seamus said. "Me dad's a Muggle. Mum didn't tell him she was a witch 'til after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him."

Everyone laughed at that.

"What about you, Neville?" Ron asked, helping himself to a pastry.

"Well, my gran brought me up, and she's a witch," said Neville. "The family thought I was all-Muggle for ages, though." He continued to tell his story of how they found out he had magic, which included an uncle of his dropping him out of a window.

Lucy looked up, glancing around at the other tables. Then, between a few Ravenclaws, she saw Jeremy Whitlock—looking right back at her. They stared at each other for a moment, and then the corner of Jeremy's mouth turned up in a lazy half-grin. Lucy gave him a small smile back, and Jeremy dropped his eyes to his plate.

Lucy also lowered her gaze. She picked up her goblet and took a drink from it as she turned her attention back to her housemates.

"Ouch!" Harry hissed, holding a hand to his forehead.

The people around him looked over, concerned.

"What is it?" Percy asked.

"N-nothing," Harry replied. His face held a confused look, and the people around him went back to eating.

Lucy studied him for a moment longer. "You sure you're okay?" she asked.

"Yeah," Harry replied distractedly. He turned to Percy and asked, "Who's that teacher talking to Professor Quirrell?"

"Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he's looking so nervous. That's Professor Snape," Percy replied. "He teaches Potions, but he doesn't want to—everyone knows he's after Quirrell's job. Knows an awful lot about the Dark Arts, Snape."

Lucy glanced at Harry, who was staring up at the high table with a frown.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The desserts disappeared eventually, and the tables returned to looking as though there hadn't just been an excellent feast taking place. Professor Dumbledore stood again, and the hall quieted once more.

"Ahem—just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered," he began. "I have a few start-of-term notices to give you. First-years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils… and few of our older students would do well to remember that, as well."

Lucy thought she saw Dumbledore glance over at the Weasley twins, and she giggled.

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, our caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors," Dumbledore went on. "Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact your Head of House.

"We have one new staffing appointment this year," Dumbledore continued. "Some of you may recognize our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Professor Quirrell." He gestured to the nervous-looking professor whom Harry had pointed out earlier. "For those of you who don't know, Professor Quirrell was our Muggle Studies professor a few years ago, and he has kindly agreed to return to Hogwarts and continue teaching.

"Finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

Harry laughed, along with a few others. Lucy frowned; Dumbledore didn't sound like he was kidding.

"He's not serious?" Harry whispered to Percy.

"Must be," Percy replied. "It's odd, because he usually gives us a reason why we're not allowed to go somewhere—for instance, the forest's full of dangerous beasts; everyone knows that. I do think he might have told us prefects, at least."

"And now, I think it is bedtime," Dumbledore finished. "Off you trot!"

"First-years, please come with me!" Percy called over the heads of the Gryffindors as they stood.

While the first-years gathered next to Percy, the rest of the students made their way out of the hall.

"Follow me, please!" Percy said loudly. "I'll be showing you the quickest way to the dormitory. Okay, let's go!"

The first-years did as they were told. Percy led them out of the Great Hall and up the marble staircase in the entrance hall. They climbed up more and more stairs, and they went through a few doors that were pretending to be walls.

The group came to a sudden stop, and Lucy almost walked into Hermione. They looked up to see a buddle of walking sticks floating in midair a little way in front of them. Percy stepped forward, and the sticks started throwing themselves at him.

"Peeves," Percy whispered. "A poltergeist." He raised his voice and said, "Peeves—show yourself!"

There was a loud sound, like air being let out of a balloon.

Percy scowled and continued, "Do you want me to go to the Bloody Baron?"

At these words, there was a sharp _pop_ , and a little man who looked like a ghost appeared. He had dark eyes and a wide mouth, and he floated in the air cross-legged. In his hand were the walking sticks. "Ooooh!" he said, cackling evilly. "Ickle Firsties! What fun!"

Suddenly, he swooped down at them, and they all ducked.

"Go away, Peeves, or the Baron'll hear about this! I mean it!" Percy shouted impatiently.

Peeves stuck out his tongue and dropped the walking sticks. Neville squealed and covered his head with his arms as the sticks all came down on him. Peeves then zoomed away, rattling some suits of armor as he flew past.

"Are you all right, Neville?" Lucy asked, and Neville nodded.

"You'll want to watch out for Peeves," said Percy as he began forward again. "The Bloody Baron's the only one who can control him. He won't even listen to us prefects. Here we are."

They had reached the end of a corridor. Hanging on the wall was a portrait of a large woman wearing a pink silk dress.

"Password?" she asked.

"Caput Draconis," Percy replied.

The Fat Lady nodded, and the whole portrait swung open to reveal a hole in the wall. The first-years clambered in after Percy—Seamus and Ron had to help Neville up—and they entered the Gryffindor common room. It was a warm, cozy place filled with squashy-looking armchairs and small couches. There was a group of study tables in one corner, and there was a large fireplace against one wall.

"Straight ahead you'll see the staircases to the dormitories," Percy instructed. "Girls, your dormitory is through the right door, and boys, yours is through the left. There are three dormitories going up the stairs and four going down; you'll see what I mean when you go to your rooms. There are signs that will tell you which dormitory yours is. All your luggage should have already been brought up. Now, I'm sure you'll want to be well-rested for your first day of classes tomorrow. Good night."

He turned and disappeared through the left doorway. Most of the first-years went to the staircases, as well, but a few lingered.

Lucy went over to where Fred and George were sitting in front of the fire.

"Hey, Lu. Sit on down," George said, patting the couch cushion next to him. Then he took a bite out of the pastry in his hand.

Lucy smirked at him and took the seat. She kicked her feet up on the table in front of the couch and asked, "Aren't you full enough from the feast?"

"The food here is too good to stop eating just because the feast's over," Fred replied. He lifted up an éclair. "Care for an éclair?"

Lucy shrugged and then held her hand out. She ate it, humming her approval. "Well, thank you for the dessert," she said when she'd finished. "Now, I think it's time for bed." She stood up.

"If you must," George quipped with a wink.

"Yes, I must," Lucy replied. "It's been an exciting day. Good night!" She skipped off to the dormitories, leaving Fred and George laughing behind her.

She went through the girls' door and immediately saw a sign on the wall that stated which dormitories were above and which were below. The sign informed her that the first-years' dorm was up, and so she began climbing the stairs. She passed by two other dormitories before reaching the last one at the top of the staircase. There was another sign, this time on the door, that read _First Year_. Lucy knocked softly and entered.

The dormitory was a round room. There were five four-poster beds around the perimeter, and there was a door opposite of the entrance. The other four first-year girls were already there and getting ready for bed.

Hermione smiled at Lucy and pointed to the bed next to hers.

"Is that one mine?" Lucy asked.

"It's the last one left," Hermione replied.

Lucy went over to her new bed. At the head of the bed, there was a wardrobe on one side and a bedside table on the other. At the foot, Lucy saw that her trunk was sitting on the floor. She opened it and pulled out a pair of pajamas.

"Is that the bathroom through there?" Lucy asked Hermione, gesturing to the other door.

"Yes," Hermione replied with a nod.

Lucy excused herself to use the bathroom. When she returned, she found Hermione was already snuggled under the covers in her own bed. Lucy laid her robes out on top of her trunk so that they could get the Gryffindor house patches sewn onto them.

Once she was finished, she pulled the curtains on the end and one side of her bed. She left the side open that faced Hermione's bed. Evie jumped up onto the bed next to Lucy and curled up into a ball. Lucy got under the covers and looked over at Hermione.

"Well, good night," Hermione said. "See you in the morning."

"Yeah," Lucy said, pulling the blankets over her shoulders. "In the morning."

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: For those of you who read the old version of this story, John McDevlyn is now Jeremy Whitlock. The main reason for the change of his first name was that I didn't like the way it sounded if I ever listed his name next to/with Ron's, because they rhyme. John also used to be one of my favorite names, and then I met a guy named John, and he was (pardon my French) a major dick and put me off the name. So, John McDevlyn became Jeremy McDevlyn for a little while. Then, I decided I didn't really like his last name anymore, either, so I changed it to Whitlock. I picked Whitlock because I've been really into reading Twilight fanfiction stories lately, specifically with Jasper-Bella pairings. The only slightly irritating thing about changing his last name was that I then had to change where he went in order of sorting.**_

 _ **Speaking of sorting, I added other characters into Lucy's year. I know that there are only supposed to be 40 students in Harry Potter's year, but I've added some, because 40 made the split a little to perfectly even for me. So, in this story, there are: 10 Gryffindors (5 girls, 5 boys); 13 Hufflepuffs (6 girls, 7 boys); 13 Ravenclaws (6 girls, 7 boys); and 12 Slytherins (6 girls, 6 boys). So there are 48 students total in Lucy's year. A couple will be named here or there, but for the most part, you'll never hear about them.**_

 _ **I know in the books that the students' robes didn't have the house crests on them, but I like that they added it into the movies. In this story, the students do wear matching uniforms and patches on their robes.**_

 _ **Also in the original version of this story, I think this was also two chapters that ended up together.**_

 _ **(Apologies for the length of this A/N, ha.)**_


	6. 5: Cauldrons & Broomsticks

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 5 – Cauldrons and Broomsticks**

Lucy's first week at Hogwarts was both incredible and exhausting. Getting used to going to classes was more difficult than Lucy thought it would be. Doing homework was an entirely new concept to her, since she'd never been to school before. She had also never realized how much effort there was that went into performing magic; it wasn't just waving a wand and saying the magic words. There was a lot of theory behind even the simplest spells.

Hogwarts itself was massive. It was very easy to get lost in, and Lucy was thankful that she hadn't been late to class yet. There had been a few close calls, but she was doing much better than Harry or Ron, who had been late to at least three classes throughout the week. No matter how many times Lucy told them that they should try to leave for class earlier, Harry and Ron still hadn't listened to her. Thankfully, the castle had gotten easier for Lucy to navigate as the week had gone on.

Besides Harry and Ron, Lucy had become good friends with Hermione. The boys didn't seem to like her very much, but Lucy didn't care. She had also made friends with one of the other Gryffindor first-year girls, Sally-Anne Perks, and a few of the Hufflepuff students that they shared classes with. At mealtimes, Lucy often sat with the Weasley twins and their friend Lee Jordan.

 **~LJ:TH~**

On Friday morning—the last day of the first week of school—Lucy was sitting in the Great Hall with Hermione, Sally-Anne, Fred, and George. Hermione was reading her Potions textbook, and Fred and George were bewitching little bits of sausage to fly around the Gryffindor table.

As Lucy was eating her eggs, Harry and Ron showed up at the table.

"We didn't get lost," Harry announced to Lucy, who pretended to applaud them. "What have we got today?" he asked as he and Ron began to fix themselves breakfast.

"Double Potions with the Slytherins," Ron groaned. "Snape's head of Slytherin house. They say he always favors them—we'll be able to see if it's true."

"Oh, it's true," Fred said in between swallows of toast.

"Wish McGonagall favored us," Harry muttered.

They all glanced around to the high table, where Professor McGonagall was eating breakfast with Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher and Ravenclaw's Head of House.

"Keep on wishing," Lucy sighed.

The mail arrived then. A flock of owls flew by, dropping off packages to their recipients. Lucy smiled and looked around for Thomas. When she couldn't find him, she mentally shrugged. Her parents had sent her a letter a few days ago, so it wasn't a big deal that there was nothing for her that morning.

Next to her, Harry gasped in surprise. Lucy followed his gaze and saw his snowy owl Hedwig flying towards them with a letter in her beak. Harry hadn't gotten any mail all week. As soon as Hedwig dropped the letter, Harry grabbed it and tore the envelope open.

"It's from Hagrid!" Harry said excitedly. "He wants me to come to tea. Ron, Lucy, do you want to come, too?"

Lucy and Ron agreed happily. Ron handed Harry a quill, so Harry could send an answer back to Hagrid.

 **~LJ:TH~**

After breakfast, Lucy walked with Hermione and Sally-Anne down to Potions class, which would take place in a room in the dungeons. It was cold and damp, and Lucy pulled her robes a bit tighter around herself.

The girls were a little early, but there was already a Slytherin boy waiting outside the classroom. He looked up when they walked over. With a jolt, Lucy realized that it was Jeremy Whitlock.

He seemed to recognize Lucy, because he grinned at her. "Hi," he said in a soft voice. "My name's Jeremy. What's yours again?"

"Lucy," Lucy replied.

Jeremy glanced over at Hermione and Sally-Anne expectantly.

"I'm Sally-Anne," Sally-Anne said.

"Nice to meet you," Jeremy said with a nod. Then he looked at Hermione, who failed to introduce herself, so he asked Lucy, "Who's your other friend?"

"Oh, this is Hermione," Lucy introduced her.

Hermione nodded without saying anything, and she looked a bit apprehensive. Lucy wondered if it was because Jeremy was in Slytherin.

Apparently, Jeremy was thinking the same thing, because he said, "You know, I'm not going to bite. Being in Slytherin doesn't automatically make me an ass. I guess I'm just too much like my father," he added quietly, turning away from the girls.

Lucy watched him curiously. "What does that mean?" she asked after a moment.

Jeremy heaved a sigh and then rolled his head against the wall to look at her. He smiled. "Nothing," he replied. "Don't worry about it."

Lucy opened her mouth to say more when a shout of, "Whitlock!" rang out from down the corridor. Lucy saw Malfoy and a few other Slytherin boys coming down the hall.

"Malfoy," Jeremy muttered darkly.

"Old friends?" Lucy whispered to him slyly.

Jeremy smirked humorously. "I'm sure my old man would be _thrilled_ if I started to pal around with that slime ball," he replied in a low voice.

Lucy let out a laugh which earned a grin from Jeremy. Before she could say anything, however, Malfoy had caught up to them.

"Where were you this morning?" Malfoy asked Jeremy, completely ignoring the Gryffindor girls.

Jeremy shrugged impassively.

Malfoy frowned. He glanced over at Lucy and then smirked. "Really, Whitlock?" he scoffed. "She's a Gryffindor. Not worth the time of day."

"Says who?" Jeremy shot back.

"Says anyone who knows anything," Malfoy replied. "You need to watch yourself, Whitlock. Gryffindors are nobodies, and they'll be nobodies when we leave this sorry excuse for a school."

"Look, if you have a problem with me, you can take it up with me," Lucy cut in, annoyed that he was talking about her and her fellow Gryffindors with such disrespect, and Sally-Anne nodded vigorously from beside her.

Malfoy smirked again and muttered, "Whatever."

Nobody said anything else as the rest of their classmates began to show up. Soon enough, Professor Snape came down the stairs and unlocked the classroom door.

"Enter," he commanded in a soft, cold voice.

The Slytherins sauntered inside, followed by the Gryffindors more hesitantly. Jeremy glanced at Lucy, looking conflicted, and he sat at a table with some other Slytherins. Lucy, on the other hand, sat down between Hermione and Sally-Anne. She shot an encouraging smile at Jeremy before getting her book out. Harry and Ron had settled at the table next to Lucy, and when they looked over at her, Lucy stuck her tongue out playfully.

When the class had filed into the room, Snape began with a roll call. When he got to Harry's name, he paused and looked up.

"Ah, yes," he murmured, "Harry Potter. Our new— _celebrity_."

Some of the Slytherins, including Malfoy and his friends Crabbe and Goyle, laughed at this. Lucy glared at the teacher resentfully; it's not like Harry had _asked_ to be famous.

Snape finished up with the roll call and then turned to his class. "You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making," he said, still talking very quietly. "As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses.… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even stopper death—if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."

There was silence in the room as everyone soaked up this information. Next to Lucy, Hermione was hanging on the edge of her seat. Lucy guessed she wanted to prove that she wasn't a _dunderhead_ , as Snape so eloquently put it.

"Potter!" Snape shouted suddenly, and some Gryffindors flinched at the sudden volume increase of his voice. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Hermione's hand shot into the air.

"I don't know, sir," Harry replied in a small, confused voice.

Snape sneered. "Tut, tut—fame clearly isn't everything," he said. Ignoring Hermione, he began once more, "Let's try again. Potter, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?"

Hermione's arm reached higher up. On the other side of the dungeon, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were shaking with silent laughter. Lucy balled her hands into fists and concentrated on keeping her cool.

"I don't know, sir," Harry repeated. He sounded embarrassed.

"Thought you wouldn't open a book before coming, eh, Potter?" Snape questioned, sounding almost gleeful.

Lucy thought it was unfair to assume that Harry hadn't looked over his books just because he didn't know the answers to two questions.

Snape asked Harry once more, still ignoring Hermione, "What is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

Hermione jumped out of her seat, stretching her arm as high as it could go. In the back of Lucy's mind, she felt sort of embarrassed by Hermione's behavior, but at present, she was too concerned with the way Snape was treating Harry.

"I don't know," Harry said. "I think Hermione does, though. Why don't you try her?"

A few Gryffindors laughed, including Lucy and Sally-Anne.

"Sit down," Snape snapped at Hermione, fury finally infiltrating his calm demeanor. "For your information, Potter, asphodel and wormwood make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known as the Draught of Living Death. A bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat, and it will save you from most poisons. As for monkshood and wolfsbane, they are the same plant, which also goes by the name of aconite. Well? Why aren't you all copying that down?"

The sounds of quills and parchment being pulled out of bags filled the dungeons, and Lucy scowled.

"A point will be taken from Gryffindor house for your cheek, Potter," Snape added, his voice carrying over the noise.

Next, Snape paired them up and had them make a potion to cure boils. Lucy was partnered up with Hermione, which she was glad for, because Hermione knew exactly what she was doing. Not that Lucy didn't know what she was doing, but she was feeling slightly distracted as she watched, from the corner of her eye, Snape walk around criticizing all of the Gryffindors' work.

Suddenly, Neville's and Seamus's potion was flowing out of their mangled cauldron and onto the stone floor. Lucy and Hermione quickly jumped up onto their stools, watching in horror as Neville began sprouting red boils all over his arms and legs. He had been drenched in his own potion.

"Idiot boy!" Snape yelled. He waved his wand, and the spilled potion was cleared away immediately.

The class began to climb down from their chairs cautiously.

"I suppose you added the porcupine quills before taking the cauldron off the fire?" Snape snapped.

Neville made a sound like a dog that had just been kicked.

Snape wheeled around to spit at Seamus, "Take him up to the hospital wing." Then, fast as lightning, he was turning around again, this time to look at Harry and Ron, who were at the next table. "You—Potter—why didn't you tell him not to add the quills? Thought he'd make you look good if he got it wrong, did you? That's another point you've lost for Gryffindor."

Lucy's mouth fell open, but, as she made a move to retort, Hermione grabbed her arm and hissed, "No! Leave it, or Gryffindor'll be in even more trouble!" Lucy saw Ron kick Harry under the table, probably telling him the exact same thing.

Then Lucy looked up and saw, across the dungeon, Jeremy frowning. Malfoy, on the other hand, looked like he'd just woken up on Christmas morning.

 **~LJ:TH~**

After another agonizing hour, they were finally leaving the dungeons. Lucy wanted to hang back and see if she could talk to Jeremy again, but Harry and Ron practically pulled her away.

"Come _on_ , Lucy. Let's get some food," Ron grumbled. "Why do you want to stay down here so badly for, anyway?"

"No reason," Lucy replied quickly. "Let's go have lunch."

 **~LJ:TH~**

Just before three o'clock that afternoon, Lucy, Harry, and Ron made their way out of the castle and to Hagrid's hut on the grounds. Harry knocked on the door, and they heard Hagrid behind it saying, " _Back_ , Fang— _Back_!"

Then Hagrid's head appeared in the doorway. "Hang on," he said to the three first-years. " _Back,_ Fang."

He held the door open wider, motioning for the Gryffindors to come in. They could see now that he was trying to restrain a huge black boarhound.

"Make yerselves at home," Hagrid announced, letting go of the dog once the three students had stepped inside.

Fang bounded forward and started licking Ron's ears.

"This is Ron and Lucy," Harry introduced them.

Lucy waved and then started scratching Fang's ears.

Hagrid was preparing tea. "Another Weasley, eh?" he chuckled at Ron. "I've spent half me life chasin' yer twin brothers away from the forest. And yer Lucy?" he asked, turning to Lucy.

"Yes," she replied, "but you probably don't know my parents. I'm from America."

Hagrid nodded, laying out some cakes on a plate.

Once they were all sitting down and had been served tea and rock cakes, they started chatting about their first lessons. Lucy had coaxed Fang away from Ron by scratching his ears.

Soon, Harry began to describe how Potions went, and Hagrid reassured him that Snape was like that with everyone who wasn't a Slytherin.

"He seemed to really _hate_ me," Harry insisted.

"Rubbish!" Hagrid snorted. "Why should he?"

"You didn't seem him, Hagrid," Lucy said in Harry's defense. "He docked a point from Harry when Neville got his potion wrong… and Harry wasn't even working with Neville!"

Harry nodded, smiling at Lucy gratefully.

"Rubbish," Hagrid repeated dismissively. He turned to Ron. "How's yer brother Charlie? I liked him a lot—great with animals."

Ron started telling Hagrid about Charlie and his work with dragons. Harry looked at Lucy, who shrugged. Then Harry looked down at a newspaper clipping while Lucy rubbed Fang's head.

"Hagrid!" Harry shouted suddenly. "That Gringotts break-in happened on my birthday! It might've been happening while we were there!"

Hagrid simply grunted and offered another round of rock cakes.

Lucy frowned and looked down to read the clipping with Harry. "Your birthday is on July thirty-first?" she asked when she read the date of the break-in.

"Yes," Harry answered. "Why?"

"That's my birthday, too," Lucy explained.

Then the two of them went back to reading the newspaper.

Later, as they were walking back up to the castle, Harry seemed lost in thought. Ron, on the other hand, was happily talking about what he was going to have for dinner. Lucy sighed, glad that the first week of classes was over.

 **~LJ:TH~**

At the beginning of the second week, a notice went up in the Gryffindor common room. Flying lessons were starting on Thursday and would be held once a week until Halloween. The notice also stated that the Gryffindors would be grouped together with the Slytherins.

On the morning of the lesson, the Gryffindor first-years were very excited. Lucy herself couldn't wait to get back on a broom, although she felt confident that Fred and George had taught her to fly well enough.

Lucy was sitting with Fred and George in the Great Hall that morning. She had been sitting next to Hermione, until Hermione had pulled out a book called _Quidditch Through the Ages._ She was now reading it aloud to Neville and a few other first-years. As much as she liked Hermione, Lucy couldn't stand the constant nervous chatter and had moved down next to George. Harry and Ron were sitting across the table from them, and Ron was shooting dark looks down the table at Hermione.

"Would you _stop_ _glaring at her_?" Lucy hissed across the table.

"It's annoying," Ron complained for probably the tenth time. "Doesn't she ever shut her mouth?"

Lucy picked up a piece of toast and threw it at him. He ducked just in time, and it fell to the floor between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables.

"Hey, Ron, she's right," George said evenly. "Do you even know Hermione that well?"

"Well enough to know that she's a teacher's pet and a know-it-all," Ron retorted, watching Lucy carefully for more thrown food.

"She's probably just nervous," George reasoned.

Ron scowled and looked down at his porridge. Lucy smiled thankfully at George.

Down the table, Hermione stopped talking as owls began to swoop in with the morning mail. Nothing arrived for Lucy, which wasn't surprising, but a few seats over, Neville was brought a small package from a barn owl. Out of the package he pulled a small glass ball.

"It's a Remembrall!" he exclaimed, showing it to everyone nearby. "Gran knows I forget things—this tells you if there's something you've forgotten to do. Look, you hold it tight like this, and if it turns red—oh—" The Remembrall had grown quite red indeed. "—you've forgotten something.…"

Neville's face screwed up, thinking about what he may have forgotten, when Malfoy sauntered passed and snatched the Remembrall from him.

"Hand it over, Malfoy!" Harry snarled as he, Ron, and Lucy all jumped up.

George put a cautionary hand on Lucy's arm.

Before anything else could happen, however, Professor McGonagall appeared in a flash, demanding, "What's going on?"

"Malfoy's got my Remembrall, Professor," Neville replied immediately.

Malfoy dropped the Remembrall on the table. "Just looking," he muttered darkly and then left for his own table, Crabbe and Goyle in tow.

 **~LJ:TH~**

That afternoon, the Gryffindor first-years left the castle and headed down onto the grounds for their flying lesson. The Slytherins were already standing by the group of broomsticks.

Lucy saw Jeremy standing at the edge of the group. He looked up and met her gaze. Smiling, he took a few steps away from his fellow Slytherins, and Lucy went over to him.

"Hey," he said simply. He glanced over her shoulder. "Looks like your friends aren't happy that you came over here."

Lucy looked around, as well, and saw that Harry and Ron were glaring in Jeremy's direction. "Yeah, well, it's not their business," she replied, turning back to Jeremy. "So, how have you been this week?"

"I've been all right," he said. "How are you?"

"Pretty good," Lucy answered. "George Weasley told me that the school brooms suck. Some of them vibrate if you go too high, and others pull left all the time."

"I'm not surprised," Jeremy said, gazing over at the group of brooms.

Lucy glanced over them, too, and had to admit that some of them looked like they were in rough shape.

Madam Hooch, their instructor, arrived then and said impatiently, "Well, what are you all waiting for? Everyone, stand by a broomstick. Come on, hurry up."

Lucy and Jeremy glanced at each other and giggled before standing next to a pair of brooms. Sally-Anne ended up on Lucy's other side, and Harry and Ron were across from them. Harry caught Lucy's eye. He looked over at Jeremy and back to her again, and she got it; he wanted to know what she was doing talking to him.

"Later," she mouthed to him.

Harry frowned but nodded before peering down to inspect his broom.

"Stick your right hand over your broom," Madam Hooch called out, "and say _Up_!"

All the first-years stuck their right hands out and shouted, "Up!" Lucy's broom instantly flew into her hand, as did Harry's and Jeremy's. Jeremy nudged Lucy and motioned to Hermione, whose broom was flopping around on the ground instead of flying into her hand. A lot of other students' brooms hadn't moved at all.

"How did you do that?" Sally-Anne asked, sounding cross. "Up! UP!" The broom finally flew into her hand, and Lucy gave her an encouraging smile.

Next, they learned how to mount their broom and hold it properly. Madam Hooch moved between the students, correcting any mistakes that she saw. Harry and Ron smiled at each other when she had to correct Malfoy's grip.

"Now," Madam Hooch barked when she reached the front again, "when I blow my whistle, you'll kick off from the ground, hard. Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet, and then come straight back down by leaning forward slightly. On my whistle—three—two—"

All of a sudden, Neville was in the air; he had pushed off too early.

"Come back, boy!" Madam Hooch was shouting.

But Neville kept rising in the air. He was so nervous that he had forgotten what to do. His face paled when he noticed how high he was, and then he slipped sideways off his broom and landed hard onto the grass. Lucy put a hand to her mouth, hoping that he was all right.

Madam Hooch hurried to inspect Neville. "Broken wrist," she said. "Come on, boy—it's all right. Up you get." She helped him to his feet. Then she turned to the rest of the class and said sharply, "None of you is to move while I take this boy to the hospital wing! You leave those brooms where they are, or you'll be out of Hogwarts before you can say _Quidditch_. Come on, dear." With that, she led Neville back to the castle.

"Did you see his face, the great lump?" Malfoy laughed as soon as they were out of earshot, and some of the other Slytherins joined in.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Parvati Patil, one of the other Gryffindor first-years, snapped.

"Ooooh, sticking up for Longbottom!" squealed Pansy Parkinson, a Slytherin girl. "Never thought _you'd_ like fat little crybabies, Parvati."

"Look!" Malfoy interrupted, snatching up something from the ground. "It's that stupid thing Longbottom's gran sent him." He held up the Remembrall, and it glittered in the sun.

"Give it here, Malfoy," said Harry quietly.

Lucy went to take a step forward, but Jeremy grabbed her arms to hold her back.

Malfoy sent a nasty smile at Harry. "I think I'll leave it somewhere for Longbottom to find—how about—up a tree?"

"Give it _here_!" Harry yelled, but it was no use.

Malfoy jumped onto his broom and kicked off from the ground. He could fly pretty well, Lucy admitted, but someone needed to stop him.

Malfoy flew up until he was as high as a nearby oak tree and called down, "Come and get it, Potter!"

Harry grabbed his broom immediately.

" _No_!" shouted Hermione. "Madam Hooch told us not to move—you'll get us all into trouble."

Harry ignored her, threw his leg over the broom, and pushed off from the ground.

"Harry!" Lucy shouted. She hoped he knew what he was doing, and she was pleasantly surprised at the amount of control he seemed to have over his broom.

He rose up until he was level with Malfoy. "Give it here," Harry called, "or I'll knock you off that broom!"

The two boys exchanged a few more words which the students on the ground couldn't hear. Lucy felt Jeremy let go of her arms, but she was too fixated on the scene above them to move.

"Catch it if you can, then!" Malfoy shouted as he threw the ball into the air. He took off for the ground again.

Harry, on the other hand, raced after the ball, looking determined to catch it.

Lucy anxiously put a hand to her mouth. "Merlin, I can't watch this," she moaned, her eyes glued to Harry's diving form.

Finally, about a foot from the ground, Harry reached out and snatched the Remembrall from the air. Then he pulled his broom out of the dive and gently rolled onto the grass. The rest of the Gryffindor first-years started cheering and ran over to him.

"HARRY POTTER!" Professor McGonagall was striding towards them, and the Gryffindors all stopped celebrating the moment they saw her. " _Never_ —in all my time at Hogwarts—how _dare_ you—might've broken your neck—"

Sally-Anne cut in, "It wasn't his fault, Professor—"

"Be quiet, Miss Perks," Professor McGonagall interrupted.

Ron started, "But Malfoy—"

"That's _enough_ , Mr. Weasley," Professor McGonagall said firmly. "Potter, follow me, now."

Harry quietly followed the professor back up to the castle, and when they were far enough away, Malfoy and his friends broke out into laughter again.

Angered, Lucy pulled her wand out and marched over to Malfoy. "How _dare_ you steal Neville's Remembrall and get Harry into trouble!" she snarled, pointing her wand at his face. "I should hex you, right here, right now!"

Jeremy stepped forward and lowered her arm. "Come on, Lucy. You don't want to get in trouble," he murmured to her.

Malfoy was smirking, but Lucy could see the relief washing over his face.

"I don't care. He deserves it," Lucy replied, still glaring at Malfoy.

"Yeah, probably," Jeremy agreed loudly, and Malfoy scowled at him.

Madam Hooch appeared at that moment, and Lucy quickly stowed her wand away.

"Get back next to your brooms," Madam Hooch snapped. She was looking around the class as they scrambled back to where their brooms were lying in the grass. "Where's Potter?" she asked when everyone was back in their places.

"Professor McGonagall needed him for something," Ron replied quickly.

Madam Hooch nodded in understanding before continuing with the lesson.

Lucy was distracted for the rest of class, though, worried about what was going to happen to Harry. Hopefully he wouldn't get into too much trouble.…

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: Sally-Anne Perks is first mentioned in this chapter, and she is actually one of the girls on J.K. Rowling's "original forty" list, which was the list of all the students in Harry's year. In all the photos I've seen of the list, you could never see which house Sally-Anne was in, so I took the liberty of placing her in Gryffindor. In my original stories uploaded here, she wasn't mentioned until book 6. Her friendship with Lucy is something that I've added into all of my stories now, because I wanted her to be important later on, even if she was only mentioned once or twice near the beginning. Besides, it felt silly to introduce a new character into the sixth story who supposedly had spent the last five years sharing a dorm and classes with Lucy but was never mentioned previously.**_

 _ **Also, the books are very vague when it comes to the flying lessons. We only ever see that very first one. I always felt like there would be more than one lesson, so I added the line that they would have flying lessons once a week until Halloween. Maybe Harry was excused from lessons after he was put on the Quidditch team? Who knows.**_


	7. 6: Midnight Walks

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 6 – Midnight Walks**

"You're _joking_!" Lucy cried.

She and Ron had finally met up with Harry at dinner. Harry was grinning; he had just finished telling them about Professor McGonagall putting him on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

" _Seeker_?" Ron asked, his fork hovering between his plate and his mouth. "But first-years _never_ —you must be the youngest house player in about—"

"A century," Harry finished for him, eating as much pie as he could at once. "I start training next week. Only don't tell anyone—Wood wants to keep it a secret."

Lucy and Ron nodded in agreement, both extremely surprised at Harry's luck.

Then Fred and George walked up to them. "Well done," George said to Harry quietly. "Wood told us. We're on the team, too—Beaters."

"I tell you, we're going to win that Quidditch cup for sure this year," Fred continued. "We haven't won since Charlie left, but this year's team is going to be brilliant. You must be good, Harry—Wood was almost skipping when he told us."

"Anyway, we've got to go," George said. "Lee Jordan reckons he's found a new secret passageway out of the school."

"I bet it's the one behind the statue of Gregory the Smarmy that we found in our first week," Fred sighed. "See you."

With that, the twins took their leave, after poking Lucy in the sides.

"Having a last meal, Potter?"

Lucy turned around to see Malfoy, with Crabbe and Goyle following him, as always.

"When are you getting the train back to the Muggles?" Malfoy taunted.

"You're a lot braver now that you're back on the ground and got your little friends with you," Harry shot back.

Lucy snickered, and Crabbe glared down at her.

"I'd take you on anytime on my own," Malfoy sneered. "Tonight, if you want. Wizard's duel. Wands only—no contact. What's the matter? Never heard of a wizard's duel before, I suppose?"

"Of course he has," Ron replied, whipping his head around. "I'm his second—who's yours?"

Lucy was glad he had intervened; she was fairly sure that Malfoy was right about Harry not knowing what a wizard's duel was.

Malfoy looked over his friends, deciding who would be better. "Crabbe," he announced. "Midnight all right? We'll meet you in the trophy room; that's always unlocked." Then he turned and strutted back to the Slytherin table, with Crabbe and Goyle lumbering after him.

Lucy and Ron turned back to face Harry.

"What _is_ a wizard's duel?" Harry asked, sounding confused. "And what do you mean, you're my second?"

"Well, a second's there to take over if you die," Ron said, digging back into his dinner.

Harry's eyes widened a bit in surprise.

"Blunt, Ron," Lucy snorted. "Don't worry, Harry. It's not like you guys know any spells that will be damaging enough."

"I bet he expected you to refuse, anyway," Ron added, shrugging.

"What if I wave my wand and nothing happens?" Harry asked desperately.

"Throw it away and punch him in the face," Ron suggested.

Lucy shrugged and nodded her agreement.

"Excuse me." Hermione had come up to them. Lucy grinned at her, and Hermione gave her a small smile in return.

"Can't a person eat in peace in this place?" Ron asked, to which Lucy elbowed him in the side.

Hermione, ignoring Ron, began, "I couldn't help overhearing what you and Malfoy were saying—"

"Bet you could," Ron grumbled.

"—and you _mustn't_ go wandering around the school at night," Hermione went on. "Think of the points you'll lose Gryffindor if you're caught, and you're bound to be. It's really very selfish of you."

"And it's really none of your business," Harry replied coolly.

Lucy looked at him in surprise; he usually wasn't rude to Hermione, no matter how Ron decided to act around her.

"Good-bye," Ron added, turning back to his food.

Hermione sighed in annoyance, spun on her heel, and walked away from them.

Lucy looked back at the boys. "Nice going, you two boneheads," she snarled. "Maybe she's right." She stood up, ready to follow Hermione. "I'll see you tonight. There's _no way_ you're going without me, or else I'll hex you. Agreed?" She glowered at them for a moment longer until they both nodded. Then she hurried away after Hermione.

"Hermione!" she called when she reached the entrance hall.

Hermione stopped at the bottom of the marble stairs and looked over her shoulder. "Hi, Lucy," she said quietly.

The two girls walked in silence back to the Gryffindor common room.

When they were outside of it, Hermione turned to Lucy and said, "I don't know what I did to those two, but whenever I try to help them, they always find a way to insult me."

"I don't know what their problems are, either," Lucy said with a frown, "but I'm sure they'll come around eventually."

She gave the Fat Lady the password, and the portrait swung open. Both girls climbed through the hole and into the common room.

"Do you approve of what they're doing tonight?" Hermione asked.

"Not really, no," Lucy admitted. "I don't think either of them could hurt each other with magic, except by accident. But if it got physical, and Crabbe and Goyle got involved… I need to go with them to at least make the numbers even. Plus, they're my friends."

"I suppose," Hermione replied with a frown. "I just don't know why they would risk getting into trouble just to have some stupid duel. They should just ignore Malfoy."

Lucy nodded, knowing that Hermione was right. Still, she had to go with them to make sure that her friends were going to be okay.

 **~LJ:TH~**

That night, Lucy waited for Harry and Ron at the bottom of the dormitory stairs. She checked the time; it was about 11:30. She frowned, wondering why they were taking so long. _They better not have left me here_ , she thought to herself.

A few minutes later, though, Harry and Ron crept down the stairs to join her. The three of them quietly stole towards the portrait hole.

"I can't believe you're going to do this, Harry," a voice said from nearby.

The three stopped in their tracks and turned to see Hermione in a pink dressing gown, sitting in a chair and watching them with a frown.

" _You_!" Ron almost shouted. "Go back to bed!"

Usually Lucy stood up for Hermione, but this time, she was on Ron's side. Hermione should just let them go out.

"I almost told your brother Percy," Hermione snapped at Ron. "He's a prefect. He'd put a stop to this." Lucy frowned as Hermione turned to her and pleaded, "Lucy, please. You don't want to get in trouble, do you?"

Before Lucy could answer, Harry said, "Come on."

He and Ron walked passed Hermione and pushed the portrait open. Lucy shrugged and mouthed, "Sorry," to Hermione before following Harry and Ron out of the common room.

Hermione hurried after them. "Don't you _care_ about Gryffindor?" she hissed at them. "Do you _only_ care about _yourselves_? _I_ don't want Slytherin to win the House Cup, and you'll lose all the points I got from Professor McGonagall for knowing about Switching Spells!"

"Go away," Ron said.

"All right, but I warned you. You just remember what I said when you're on the train home tomorrow. You're so—" Hermione stopped suddenly.

Lucy, Harry, and Ron turned to see why she hadn't finished her sentence and saw that the Fat Lady was missing from her portrait. They were all locked out of Gryffindor Tower until the she returned.

"Now what am I going to do?" Hermione asked anxiously.

"That's your problem," Ron replied darkly. "We've got to go; we're going to be late."

Harry and Ron continued down the corridor. Lucy followed them only after glancing at Hermione and giving her a helpless shrug.

They were just rounding the corner to the next hall when Hermione dashed up behind them. "I'm coming with you," she panted.

"You are _not_ ," Ron snarled.

"D'you think I'm going to stand out here and wait for Filch to catch me?" Hermione shot back. "If he finds all four of us, I'll tell him the truth—that I was trying to stop you—and you can back me up."

Ron started shouting, "You've got some nerve—!"

"Shut up, both of you!" Harry snapped. "I heard something."

There was a sniffling coming from somewhere down the corridor.

"Mrs. Norris?" Ron breathed, looking down the hall.

The four of them inched forward, prepared to find Filch's cat Mrs. Norris, but instead they found Neville curled up on the floor. They walked closer, and Neville jerked upright.

"Thank goodness you found me!" he gasped. "I've been out here for _hours_. I couldn't remember the new password to get in to bed."

"Keep your voice down, Neville," Lucy hushed him. "The password's _Pig_ _Snout_ , but it won't help you now. The Fat Lady's left her portrait."

"How's your arm?" Harry asked.

"Fine," Neville replied, holding it up. "Madam Pomfrey mended it in about a minute."

"Good—well, look, Neville, we've got to be somewhere. We'll see you later," Harry said.

"Don't leave me!" Neville cried, jumping to his feet, and Lucy shushed him again. "I don't want to stay here alone," Neville added quietly. "The Bloody Baron's been past twice already."

Ron glanced down at his watch and then glared at Neville and Hermione. "If either of you get us caught," he started slowly and furiously, "I'll never rest until I've learned the Curse of the Bogies Quirrell told us about and used it on you."

Hermione opened her mouth, but Harry told her to be quiet and motioned for them all to follow him.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Finally, they reached the trophy room with no sign of Filch or Mrs. Norris. Malfoy and Crabbe hadn't shown up yet, either. They waited… and waited… and waited some more. Still, there was no sign of Malfoy. Harry had his wand out and gripped tightly in his hand.

"He's late. Maybe he's chickened out," Ron whispered.

Lucy shrugged; she didn't have a very good feeling about this.

They heard a noise from the next room, and they all jumped. Neville squeaked, and Lucy threw her hand over his mouth.

"Sniff around, my sweet. They might be lurking in a corner."

The five of them looked at each other with wide eyes.

"FILCH!" Lucy and Hermione breathed at the same time.

Harry waved at them to follow him quickly. They moved away from Filch's voice and out of the trophy room.

"They're in here somewhere," Filch muttered to his cat just as the five Gryffindors got through the door. "Probably hiding."

"This way!" Harry whispered to the rest of them.

They began to hurry down the corridor. Then Neville squeaked again, and he started sprinting down the hall. He didn't get very far before he tripped over his own feet, and he grabbed Ron's waist to try to keep himself from falling. Unfortunately, they both toppled over, straight into a suit of armor. The clanging echoed down the corridor, along with Ron's swearing. Lucy reached down to yank Ron to his feet.

"RUN!" Harry yelled, and they sprinted away from the area.

 **~LJ:TH~**

When they were far enough away from the trophy room, they stopped to catch their breath. Neville was clutching his side and panting heavily, and Lucy put her hands over her head to try to calm her breathing.

"I think we've lost them," Harry gasped out, leaning against the stone wall.

"I… _told_ … you," Hermione puffed. "I… told… you."

"We've got to get back to Gryffindor tower," Ron added, "as quickly as possible."

"You think?" Lucy asked sarcastically, wondering why they were still standing around. She thought they needed to stop talking and keep moving.

"Malfoy tricked you," Hermione said to Harry. "You realize that, don't you? He was never going to meet you—Filch knew someone was going to be in the trophy room. Malfoy must have tipped him off."

"Lay off, Hermione," Lucy snapped. "We didn't know that Malfoy was going to tell Filch anything. Can we get going, please?"

"Let's go," Harry agreed, and they started off towards Gryffindor Tower.

They hadn't gone far when something came flying out of a classroom in front of them. It was Peeves. He squealed happily when he saw them.

"Shut up, Peeves—please—you'll get us thrown out," Ron begged, but Peeves simply laughed evilly.

"Wandering around at midnight, Ickle Firsties? Tut, tut, tut. Naughty, naughty, you'll get caughty," he sang, floating in front of them.

"Not if you just let us pass, Peeves, please," Lucy pleaded with him.

"Should tell Filch, I should," Peeves continued, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "It's for your own good, you know."

"Get out of the way!" Ron snapped impatiently, lunging forward and swiping at Peeves.

Peeves floated easily out of the way and smiled widely. Then he took a lungful of air and opened his mouth. "STUDENTS OUT OF BED! STUDENTS OUT OF BED DOWN THE CHARMS CORRIDOR!"

With a hurried shout of "Run!", the five of them ducked under Peeves and, as fast as they could, sprinted off. They came to the end of the corridor and tried to pull the door open, but it wouldn't budge. It was locked.

"This is it!" Ron cried as he and Lucy tried pulling on the door handle at the same time. "We're done for! This is the end!"

"Enough with the theatrics, Ron!" Lucy bellowed back, grabbing the handle with both hands. "Just try and _help_!"

They could hear Filch running from a distance, and Neville let out a yelp.

"Oh, move _over_ ," Hermione demanded, shoving Lucy and Ron away from the handle. She took hold of Harry's wand, which had been dangling from his fingers, forgotten. Then she tapped the lock of the door and muttered, " _Alohomora_!"

They heard the lock click. Ron seized the handle and pulled the door open. They all hurried into the room, and Harry shut it quickly behind them. Crowding around the door, they all pushed their ears up against it to see if Filch had caught up to them.

"Which way did they go, Peeves?" they heard Filch ask urgently. "Quick, tell me."

"Say _please_ ," Peeves rebuked in an oily voice.

"Don't mess with me, Peeves. Now _where did they go_?"

"Shan't say nothing if you don't say please," Peeves chanted.

"All right— _please_ ," Filch sighed.

"NOTHING! Ha haaa! Told you I wouldn't say nothing if you didn't say please! Ha, ha! Haaa!"

The five students heard Peeves zoom away down the hallway, leaving Filch cursing behind him.

"He thinks this door is locked," Harry whispered, and Lucy nodded in agreement. "I think we'll be okay—get _off_ , Neville! _What_?"

Lucy looked over to see a pale-faced Neville pulling on Harry's robe's sleeve. She glanced at Harry and then slowly turned around to see what had Neville so frightened.

"The forbidden third-floor corridor," Lucy breathed to herself. And the only reason she knew that was because she was standing face-to-face with a giant, three-headed dog.

The creature was staring at them, apparently surprised at the appearance of five small people in its corridor. A low growling was coming from each of the heads' mouths.

Lucy was the first to recover, and she shouted, "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? RUN!"

She groped for the handle of the door, but Harry beat her to it and thrust it open. Hermione screeched as the five of them streaked out of the room. Harry threw the door shut and locked it behind them.

They barely took notice of the absence of Filch; they just ran, and kept running, until they made it back to the portrait hole.

"Where on earth have you all been?" the Fat Lady asked, looking appalled, as they ran up to her portrait.

"Never mind that," Harry snapped. "Pig snout! _Pig_ _snout_!"

The Fat Lady was still watching them in bewilderment as the frame swung open.

They all climbed through and collapsed into the common room. Harry, Ron, and Neville sunk into armchairs, Hermione was on a couch, and Lucy was sprawled out on the floor in front of the fire. They sat for a long time without saying anything while they caught their breaths.

"What do you think they're doing, keeping a thing like _that_ locked up in a school?" Ron asked, breaking the silence. "If any dog needs exercise, _that_ one does."

Hermione, looking angry, rounded on him. "You don't use your eyes, any of you, do you?" she snapped. "Didn't you see what it was standing on?"

"The floor?" Harry shot back. "I wasn't looking at its feet. I was too busy with its _heads_."

"No, _not_ the floor," Hermione replied. "It was standing on a trapdoor. It's obviously guarding something." Then she stood up, still glowering at Harry and Ron. "I hope you're pleased with yourselves. We could all have been killed—or worse, expelled. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to bed. Lucy, are you coming?"

"In a minute," Lucy answered.

Hermione frowned deeply and swept off to the girls' staircase.

Ron stared after her, as did Lucy. "No, we don't mind," Ron said once she was gone. "You'd think we dragged her along, wouldn't you?"

Harry shrugged, his forehead wrinkled in thought.

Neville excused himself then, still shaking slightly as he left the common room.

"What's up, Harry?" Lucy asked when she, Harry, and Ron were alone.

"Nothing," Harry muttered. "It's nothing."

The boys stood up and said good night to Lucy before disappearing up the stairs.

Lucy leaned back against the legs of the couch and stared at the dying embers in the fireplace. The night had been rather exciting, but she decided against telling her parents about this particular adventure. She knew that Hermione was right; that dog could have seriously hurt or killed them in an instant. They had been extremely lucky.

Sighing, Lucy stood up. She stretched her arms over her head and made her way over to the girls' dormitories, planning on getting as much sleep as possible.

 **~LJ:TH~**


	8. 7: The Troll

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 7 – The Troll**

About a week later, Lucy was sitting with Harry and Ron in the Great Hall at breakfast. Hermione was sitting far away from them, as she was still upset about the whole three-headed dog episode.

Lucy was eating some hash browns when the owls started flying in with the mail. She looked up absently, and her eyes were immediately drawn to the six owls carrying one thin package through the air. She was surprised to see that the owls were flying directly towards her and the boys.

The owls dropped the parcel in front of Harry. A seventh owl with a letter landed on the table, and Harry took the envelope from it. He tore it open as the owl flew off again.

"Wow!" he breathed, handing the letter to Lucy and Ron across the table.

The two put their heads together and read the note. It was from Professor McGonagall, stating that inside the package was a broomstick for Harry. And it wasn't just any broomstick, either—

"A Nimbus Two Thousand!" Ron moaned. "I've never even _touched_ one."

"Please tell me you'll let me ride it once, Harry," Lucy begged, giving him back the letter, to which Harry nodded.

The three of them wolfed down the rest of their breakfast and hurried out of the Great Hall to unwrap the package up in Gryffindor Tower, as per Professor McGonagall's request.

They didn't get very far, however.

Malfoy was standing at the foot of the marble staircase with Crabbe and Goyle. He grabbed the package from Harry and weighed it in his hands. "That's a broomstick," he stated, tossing it back at Harry. "You'll be in for it this time, Potter. First-years aren't allowed them."

"Shows how much you know, Malfoy," Lucy shot back, glaring at him.

"It's not just any old broomstick," Ron continued smugly. "It's a Nimbus Two Thousand. What did you say you've got at home, Malfoy? A Comet Two-Sixty? Sure, Comets look flashy, but they're not in the same league as the Nimbus."

Lucy nodded in agreement.

"What would you know about it, Weasley? You couldn't afford half the handle," Malfoy snarled. "I suppose you and your brothers have to save up twig by twig."

Before Ron could retort, Professor Flitwick appeared next to them. "What's going on here?" he asked. "Not arguing, I hope?"

"Potter's been sent a broomstick," Malfoy replied quickly, smirking at Harry.

"Yes, yes, that's right," Professor Flitwick said, smiling warmly at Harry. "Professor McGonagall told me all about the special circumstances, Potter. What model is it?"

"A Nimbus Two Thousand," Harry replied, "and it's really thanks to Malfoy here that I've got it."

Malfoy had a look of hatred and surprise on his face. Lucy, Harry, and Ron bid the professor good-bye and swept past Malfoy up the marble staircase.

"Well, it's true," Harry insisted, chuckling. "If he hadn't stolen Neville's Remembrall, I wouldn't be on the team—"

"So, I suppose you think that's a reward for breaking rules?"

They turned to find Hermione coming up the stairs behind them, looking angry.

"I thought you weren't speaking to us?" Harry asked, exchanging smirks with Ron.

"Yes, don't stop," Ron added. "It's doing us so much good."

Hermione continued past them, her head held high.

Lucy rounded on the boys. "I hope you're happy with yourselves," she growled. "You could at least _try_ to be nice to her!"

"C'mon, Lucy," Ron reasoned. "She's not exactly nice to us, if you haven't noticed."

"She's not nice to you because _you're_ not nice to _her_!" Lucy protested. "You've _never_ been nice to her, Ronald Weasley! And _you_ ," she continued, glaring at Harry, "don't think that you can get away with being rude, either."

Harry shrugged. "I'm sorry, Lucy," he muttered.

Lucy surveyed both of them for a moment longer before saying, "I'll see you in class," and hurrying away after Hermione.

"HERMIONE!" she shouted when she finally found her.

Hermione turned and waited when she saw Lucy.

"I'm really sorry, Hermione," Lucy said, panting slightly as she caught up to Hermione.

"It's not your fault," Hermione replied.

Lucy noticed that she looked somewhat upset, but when she asked, Hermione waved her off. "I'm fine, really," she insisted.

Lucy shrugged and accompanied her back to the common room.

Once they reached Gryffindor Tower, Hermione excused herself. Lucy frowned after her.

"Lucy!" Sally-Anne waved at her from the other side of the room. Lucy went over to her, and Sally-Anne asked, "What's up? You look frazzled."

"Frazzled, huh?" Lucy repeated with a chuckle. "It's no big deal. Hermione is a bit upset with me, Harry, and Ron because of something that happened last week."

"When you went out after hours?" Sally-Anne asked slyly.

Lucy's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you know about that?" she demanded.

"I heard the Fat Lady talking about it," Sally-Anne answered. "She and her friend Violet were gossiping about it earlier in the week." There was a pause, and she added, "My sister says that there are no secrets in Hogwarts."

"Well, if all the paintings in the castle run around gossiping with each other, I guess I'm not surprised," Lucy said with a shake of her head. "Anyway, are you ready to go to class? We should probably get going."

"Yeah, I suppose we'd better," Sally-Anne agreed.

With that, the girls left the common room for their first class of the day.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The rest of September and October passed without incident. Lucy and her friends continued to attend their classes and do their homework. Every once in a while, Lucy, Harry, and Ron would speculate on what the three-headed dog was guarding, but they never went back to the third-floor corridor.

When October arrived, Harry began to practice with the Gryffindor Quidditch team. The first match would be at the beginning of November, so Oliver Wood—the fifth-year Captain—had the team working very hard while trying to keep Harry's position a secret.

Hermione remained distant with Lucy, especially when Harry and Ron were around, too. This caused Lucy to spend more time with the boys. She felt a bit guilty about it, because whenever she saw Hermione, she thought Hermione looked very lonely.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Halloween arrived, and Lucy was excited. The Weasley twins had told her that on Halloween night, there would be a huge feast to celebrate the holiday. Before that, however, they had to get through a regular day of classes.

The Gryffindor first-years had Charms class first, and Professor Flitwick had an exciting announcement for them.

"Today we're finally going to be practicing _Wingardium Leviosa_ ," the professor said when class had begun.

Lucy exchanged a thrilled look with Sally-Anne, who was sitting next to her; the rest of the class looked eager, as well.

Professor Flitwick went on, "I'm going to partner you up, and you'll be practicing with the feather in front of you."

So, he went through the class, pairing people up. Lucy was with Sally-Anne. She noticed, however, that Ron had been partnered with Hermione.

"Oh, no," she muttered to herself. "Please be nice, Ron."

"Now, don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing!" Professor Flitwick continued animatedly. "Swish and flick, remember—swish and flick. Saying the magic words is very important, too—never forget the Wizard Baruffio, who said _s_ instead of _f_ and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."

Lucy and Sally-Anne snorted.

The classroom immediately filled with voices saying the incantation, but no feathers went in the air.

Lucy watched as Sally-Anne swished and flicked. "It's moving!" Lucy reported happily. The feather in front of Sally-Anne was quivering slightly, but it didn't raise off the table.

Professor Flitwick, after hearing Lucy's exclamation, looked over and said, "Keep trying, Miss Perks! You almost have it!"

Harry, who was at the table in front of Lucy, let out a shout. He was partnered with Seamus, who had just set their feather on fire. Harry quickly put the fire out with his hat, and both boys looked shocked.

" _Wingardium Leviosa_!" Lucy announced, swishing and flicking her wand. The feather jumped up into the air, and then floated back down. "Did you see that? It almost worked!" she said to Sally-Anne, who was smiling and nodding.

" _Wingardium Leviosa_!" Ron shouted from the table next to Harry's.

"You're saying it _wrong_ ," Hermione snapped. "It's Wing- _gar_ -dium Levi- _o_ -sa—make the _gar_ nice and long."

"You do it, then, if you're so clever," Ron growled back.

Hermione gladly rolled up her sleeves and moved her wand correctly, saying, " _Wingardium Leviosa_!" The feather in front of her rose off the desk and flew a few feet above their heads.

Most of the other students stopped to look over.

"Oh, well done!" Professor Flitwick squeaked, clapping his hands together. "Everyone, see here! Miss Granger's done it!"

Hermione beamed proudly, and Ron looked away sourly.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Lucy and Harry were walking with a very grumpy Ron after Charms class ended.

"It's no wonder no one can stand her," Ron was snarling about Hermione. "She's a nightmare, honestly."

Lucy opened her mouth to shout at him when someone pushed between hers and Harry's shoulders and hurried past them. With a jolt, Lucy realized it was Hermione, and she was crying.

"I think she heard you," Harry said slowly, coming to a stop.

"So?" Ron retorted. "She must've noticed she's got no friends."

This was the last straw for Lucy, who turned on Ron immediately. "YOU ARE A ROTTEN, NASTY GREEN TOAD, RONALD WEASLEY!" she screamed at him. "You are going to apologize to her as soon as we get to our next class, got it? Or else I will go to Percy and McGonagall and tell them that you've been harassing her. Besides, she doesn't have no friends," Lucy added angrily. "She's got _me_." She poked Ron hard in the chest three times as she said her last sentence to punctuate the words.

With that, Lucy turned and ran after Hermione, leaving Ron looking shocked behind her.

Lucy finally caught up with Hermione in the girls' bathroom. Hermione was sitting in one of the stalls, and Lucy could hear her sniffling.

"'Mione?" Lucy asked timidly, knocking on the stall door. "Hermione, are you all right? Ron didn't mean it, you know—"

"Yes, he did," Hermione sobbed from inside, "and it's true!"

"What are you talking about? I'm your friend!" Lucy insisted.

There was a pause, only filled with Hermione's sniffs. Lucy shifted uneasily, because she knew that she hadn't been a very good friend lately. Although Hermione had been stubborn about the three-headed dog incident, Lucy couldn't blame her for not wanting to spend time around Harry and Ron when they were so mean to her. Lucy knew that she could have been there for Hermione more than she had been so far.

"Hermione," Lucy said softly, "I'm really sorry. I know I haven't been a very good friend to you, especially recently, but I'm going to try harder starting now, okay?"

"Okay," Hermione replied in a small voice.

"Are you going to come to class?" Lucy asked.

"No, I don't want to see Ron right now," Hermione answered. "I don't really want to see anyone right now, to be honest. Go ahead without me."

"Okay," Lucy called as she started walking backwards to the bathroom door. "If you need anything, you know where to find me." Then she left the bathroom and hurried to her next class, so she wouldn't be late.

 **~LJ:TH~**

It was time to go to the Halloween feast, but Lucy hadn't seen Hermione anywhere. She was pacing up and down the common room while Harry watched her warily. They were waiting for Ron, so they could go down to the feast together.

"Are you okay, Lucy?" Harry finally asked. He was sitting in an armchair with his arms crossed over his chest.

Lucy sighed before looking at him and nodding. "I just don't know where Hermione is," she explained.

She looked up hopefully as the portrait hole opened, but it was just a couple of second-years returning to put their school things away. Anxious, Lucy decided to check upstairs in their dormitory once more, but Hermione wasn't there, either.

When Lucy rejoined Harry, Ron had shown up. Lucy was still worried about where Hermione was, but Harry and Ron wanted to go down to the feast.

"Please, Lucy," Ron begged, but Lucy glared at him.

"I'm still not speaking to you," she snapped.

The portrait hole opened again, and Sally-Anne entered the common room with a couple of older girls.

Lucy hurried over to them. "Sally-Anne, have you seen Hermione anywhere?" she asked.

Sally-Anne, looking surprised at the intense look on Lucy's face, nodded. "I saw her an hour ago in one of the bathrooms," she replied. "She was crying, but she didn't want to talk to me. She said she'd be down for the feast, though."

Lucy sighed. "Thanks," she said and walked back over to Harry and Ron.

Ron was looking guilty, having heard what Sally-Anne had said.

"Don't worry, Lucy," Harry reasoned. "Hermione's probably already down in the Great Hall."

Lucy shrugged and nodded helplessly. The three of them climbed out of the common room and made their way down to the feast.

 **~LJ:TH~**

When they entered the Great Hall, Hermione was pushed to the back of Lucy's mind. The decorations were fantastic. There were real bats flying over the tables, and the regular floating candles had been replaced by jack-o-lanterns. The food was just as excellent as it had been at the start-of-term feast.

Lucy was enjoying the conversations among her fellow first-years when Professor Quirrell sprinted into the hall between the Slytherin and Ravenclaw tables. Conversations died as the professor stopped in front of Dumbledore, slumping against the head table, and gasped out, "Troll—in the dungeons—thought you ought to know." Then he fainted, crumbling onto the floor.

It took a second, but the whole hall erupted into screams and shouts. There was a loud sound, and everyone fell quiet as Dumbledore let off firecrackers from his wand.

"Prefects," he said, his voice booming across the hall, "lead your houses back to the dormitories immediately!"

The words were barely out of his mouth when Percy started shouting to the Gryffindors. "Follow me! Stick together, first-years! No need to fear the troll if you follow my orders! Stay close behind me, now. Make way, first-years coming through! Excuse me, I'm a prefect!"

Lucy hurried down the Gryffindor table with Harry and Ron, a queasy feeling in her stomach; Hermione had never shown up for the feast.

"How could a troll get in?" Harry asked worriedly to Ron as they climbed up the marble stairs in the entrance hall.

"Don't ask me; they're supposed to be really stupid," Ron replied. "Maybe Peeves let it in for a Halloween joke."

They continued to follow Percy, pushing through groups of other students.

Harry looked at Lucy, and his eyes widened. He grabbed both hers and Ron's arms. "I've just thought—Hermione," he said.

"What about her?" Ron asked.

"She doesn't know about the troll," Lucy breathed, voicing her fears.

Ron bit his lip, looking anxious. "Oh, all right," he finally said, "but Percy'd better not see us."

The three of them ducked their heads and joined a group of Ravenclaws for a moment. Then they slipped down an empty hallway and sprinted for the girls' bathroom. They turned a corner and—

"Percy!" Ron hissed, pulling Lucy and Harry behind a stone griffin.

Footsteps were coming quickly towards them. They peaked out from behind the statue and saw Snape striding down the corridor. He disappeared quickly around the corner.

"What's he doing?" Harry whispered. "Why isn't he in the dungeons with the rest of the teachers?"

"Search me," Ron replied, shrugging.

Lucy shook her head and took the lead to the bathroom.

"He's heading for the third floor," Harry said from behind her.

Then Ron pulled on the back of Lucy's robes and whispered hoarsely, "Can you smell something?"

Lucy snatched her robes out of his hands, scowling at him, before taking a large sniff. "Merlin, what _is_ that?" she murmured, pulling her robes up around her mouth and nose. "It's _disgusting_."

Then they could hear a low grunting noise coming from another passage, and there was also the sound of giant feet shuffling along. Ron pointed down the corridor and then pulled on Lucy again to drag her back into the shadows with him and Harry.

Lucy had to put her hand over her mouth to keep the gasp from leaving her throat. There was a huge creature stomping passed them. It was over ten feet tall and had a very lumpy looking body. The smell coming from it became almost unbearable. Behind it, it dragged a huge club along the floor.

The troll looked around as though trying to figure out where to go next. It stopped at a door, peered inside, and then lumbered into the room.

"The key's in the lock," Harry muttered. "We could lock it in."

"Good idea," Ron replied, shaking slightly.

The three of them edged toward the door. Lucy took a closer look at the door before realizing what room the troll had entered.

"Wait—!" she started, but Harry had already lunged forward. He pulled the door shut and turned the key in the lock.

" _Yes!_ " both boys whooped, turning to run back the way they'd come.

"No, get back here, you idiots!" Lucy shouted after them, but before she could say anything else, a high-pitched scream came from the girls' bathroom the troll had just been locked inside.

"Oh, no," Ron said as he and Harry came to a stop.

Lucy didn't wait for them to make up their minds. She unlocked the door and ran inside. She let out a little yelp at the scene in front of her. Hermione was against the opposite wall, looking very faint. The troll was slowly walking towards her, smashing sinks with its club as it moved.

Trying to think quickly, Lucy picked up a sink tap from the floor and threw it at the troll. The troll paused, and Lucy heard Harry and Ron run into the bathroom behind her. She glanced behind her and at them. "Confuse it!" she commanded. She bent down, picked up a chunk of porcelain that had once been the corner of a sink, and hefted it towards the troll.

This time the troll turned, looking blearily at Lucy, and then started towards her instead of Hermione. Lucy's heartbeat increased, and she stumbled back a few steps as she started to panic.

"Oy, pea-brain!" Ron yelled from the other side of the room, throwing another bit of sink at it.

The troll paused again, looking confused, but Ron had given Lucy the time she needed to run around the troll and reach Hermione.

"Come on, Hermione; we have to move," she said, tugging on Hermione's sleeve. "Hermione—!"

The troll let out an angry roar and lumbered toward Ron.

"Look out!" Lucy screamed at him.

Harry took off running at the troll. He jumped and manage to grab the troll around the neck. In the process of this, his wand went directly up the troll's nose. The troll howled in pain and began stomping around.

Lucy flattened herself against the wall next to Hermione in fear of getting stepped on. "Harry!" she shouted, scared that the troll was going to throw him off. "Harry, hold on!"

" _Wingardium Leviosa_!" Ron shouted, his wand out.

The troll's club flew out of its hand, rose up high in the air, and then dropped onto the troll's own head. After swaying on the spot for a few seconds, the troll pitched forward and fell onto its face. The thud made the whole room tremble.

Lucy hurried over to Harry to make sure he was okay.

"I'm fine, honestly," Harry assured her.

"Is it—dead?" Hermione asked in a shaking voice.

"I don't think so," Harry replied. "I think it's just been knocked out."

He went to pull his wand out of the troll's nose as Lucy looked up to Ron. Ron nodded, letting her know he was okay.

"Ugh—troll boogies," Harry moaned, reaching over to the troll's pants and wiping his wand off.

Slams and running footsteps surprised the students out of their shocked states. The four of them looked around at each other, not quite sure what to do next. Before they could make any decisions, Professor McGonagall came bursting into the bathroom, followed by Snape and Quirrell.

Quirrell let out a whimper and sat down on a toilet, a hand against his chest. Snape inspected the troll, while Professor McGonagall took in Lucy, Harry, and Ron. She looked livid.

"What on earth were you thinking of?" she said, her voice shaking with rage. "You're lucky you weren't killed. Why aren't you in your dormitory?"

Lucy lowered her head, trying to think of what she could tell the enraged woman in front of her.

"Please, Professor McGonagall—they were looking for me."

Lucy's head snapped back up to Professor McGonagall, who was looking around Lucy and Harry at Hermione.

"Miss Granger!" the professor exclaimed.

"I went looking for the troll," Hermione explained, "because I—I thought I could deal with it on my own—you know, because I've read all about them."

A quiet clatter came from Ron's end of the bathroom; he had dropped his wand in disbelief.

"If they hadn't found me, I'd be dead now," Hermione continued. "Lucy distracted the thing, Harry stuck his wand up its nose, and Ron knocked it out with its own club. They didn't have time to go and fetch anyone—it was about to finish me off when they arrived."

"Well—in that case—" Professor McGonagall looked between the four of them, seeming a bit suspicious before continuing, "Miss Granger, you foolish girl; how could you think of tackling a mountain troll on your own?"

Hermione hung her head in shame. Lucy shared a glance with Harry, and she knew he was thinking the same thing that she was. Hermione was getting them out of trouble by lying to a teacher; it was too bizarre.

"Miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for this," Professor McGonagall continued. "I'm very disappointed in you. If you're not hurt at all, you'd better get off to Gryffindor Tower. Students are finishing the feast in their houses."

Hermione left, her head slightly bowed. Lucy reached out and squeezed her wrist as she passed.

"Well, I still say you were lucky," Professor McGonagall said to the remaining three. "Not many first-years could have taken on a fully-grown mountain troll. You each win Gryffindor five points. Professor Dumbledore will be informed of this. You may go."

Lucy, Harry, and Ron hurried out of the bathroom and didn't say a word until they were two floors up.

"We should have gotten more than fifteen points," Ron grumbled finally.

"Ten, you mean, once she's taken off Hermione's," Harry reminded him.

"Professor McGonagall's right, though; we could've all been killed," Lucy reasoned.

Harry shrugged and nodded at the same time.

"Good of Hermione to get us out of trouble like that," Ron admitted. "Mind you, we _did_ save her."

Lucy rolled her eyes.

"She might not have needed saving if we hadn't locked the thing in with her," Harry replied.

"She might not have needed saving if _someone_ hadn't insulted her earlier today," Lucy snapped, glaring at Ron. "Then she wouldn't've been in the bathroom at all."

Ron looked down at his feet as he walked. "I'm sorry," he finally said quietly.

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," Lucy said softly.

They reached the Fat Lady's portrait. "Pig snout," all three of them announced at the same time. The portrait swung open, and they climbed in through hole.

The common room was loud and cramped as all the Gryffindors continued the Halloween feast. However, Hermione was standing near the portrait hole, waiting for them.

There was an awkward silence.

"Thanks," all four of them said at the same time.

Harry and Ron hurried away to grab plates. Lucy grinned at Hermione, and they went to get plates, as well.

After they all had gotten their food, the girls rejoined the boys at one of the round tables. Lucy couldn't help but lean over and hiss in Hermione's ear, "I told you they'd come around." Hermione's cheeks tinged pink as a smile grew over her face, and Lucy dug into her dinner, feeling satisfied that all her friends were now getting along.

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: The idea that the portraits gossip with each other and help spread stories around the school is something I wanted to establish very early on in this series. I always wondered how gossip got around the castle so quickly, so I thought that maybe it had help from either the portraits or the ghosts (or both). I also wanted to establish that Sally-Anne is a bit of a gossip herself, which will be seen throughout the series.**_


	9. 8: The First Quidditch Match

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 8 – The First Quidditch Match**

November came along, and there was a renewed excitement in the air—November meant the start of the Quidditch season. Gryffindor's first match was coming up, and it was going to be against Slytherin.

Lucy was particularly excited: not only was this going to be the first Hogwarts Quidditch match she'd watch, but it was also Harry's first match as Seeker for Gryffindor. At the same time, though, she was getting rather annoyed with most of the Slytherins—especially Malfoy.

"Don't worry, Potter; we'll be running underneath you with mattresses to catch you when you fall," he hissed towards Harry during Potions class a little over a week before the match.

"Stuff it, Malfoy," Lucy snapped back. "You're just jealous that Harry has enough talent to be on the Quidditch team as a first-year!"

The retort lost her five points from Gryffindor, but she felt pleased with herself, especially when she heard Jeremy let out a snort from nearby.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Later that night in the common room, Harry said to Lucy, "Thank you for today in Potions."

Lucy looked up from her Charms homework and smiled at him. "Malfoy's a stink rat," she replied, lowering her quill. "He's such a bully. People just need to learn how to stand up to him." She shrugged, although she was happy that Harry was appreciative.

As she leaned forward to continue her homework, Harry stopped her. "Lucy," he started, "what's going on with you and that one Slytherin boy? Joe or Jerry or whatever his name is?"

Lucy looked up in surprise, but all she could see in Harry's expression was curiosity. "Jeremy," she corrected, "and he's my friend. That's all."

"But everyone else seems to _hate_ Slytherins," Harry pressed.

"Well, Jeremy isn't like other Slytherins," Lucy answered a little harshly. She sighed and added, "He seems really nice, and he doesn't act like most of them."

There was a pause.

"I guess I just don't understand," Harry said.

"That's because you've already been trained to hate Slytherins," Lucy commented. "Have you ever really given any of them a chance? It might surprise you. The only ones you've ever really interacted with are Malfoy and his two thugs, and they're just plain bullies."

"I guess… I've never thought about it like that," Harry said, his brow furrowing in thought.

"I know," Lucy replied with a small smile. "If you ever want to make friends in this world, you just have to be open and accepting," she finished.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The day before the Quidditch match, Lucy, Harry, Ron, and Hermione decided to stand outside during their break to get some fresh air. Hermione conjured a small blue fire, contained in a jar, to keep all of them warm. They were standing with their backs to it, not saying much, when they noticed Snape crossing the courtyard towards them. The four of them huddled closer together to keep the blue fire out of his view.

"What's that you've got there, Potter?" Snape asked as he got close.

"It's _Quidditch Through the Ages_ ," Harry replied, showing the Potions master the book that he was holding.

"Library books are not to be taken outside of the school," Snape sneered at him. "Give it to me. Five points from Gryffindor."

With that, Snape swiped the book from Harry's hand and continued back to the castle. Lucy noticed that he had a limp in his walk.

"He's just made that rule up," Harry snarled angrily. "Wonder what's wrong with his leg?"

"Dunno, but I hope it's really hurting him," Ron said, glaring in Snape's direction.

With that, Hermione picked up the jar with the fire inside, and the four Gryffindors decided to head back into the castle.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Later that night, they were sitting in a window in the common room. Hermione was checking over Ron's and Harry's Charms homework, while Lucy was writing a letter to her parents. Ron was playing with an Exploding Snap deck—cards that would randomly explode, effectively ending any game the player was currently involved in.

Harry was looking around the common room, seeming slightly restless. Suddenly, he got up and announced to the others, "I think I'm going to go to Snape's office to get that book back."

"Better you than me," Ron and Hermione said at the same time.

Lucy chuckled and watched as Harry disappeared through the portrait hole. Then she went back to her letter.

A few minutes later, Hermione spoke up timidly, "Lucy, can I ask you about that Slytherin boy that you talk to?"

Lucy heaved a sigh and tossed her quill down on her parchment before leaning back in her chair. "I wish you would've been here when Harry asked me the same thing," she grumbled. Then she looked up at Hermione.

"I'm sorry. You don't have to explain anything to me," Hermione reassured quickly, looking guilty.

"No, it's okay, Hermione," Lucy said. "It just gets sort of annoying when people keep asking me about him over and over again. _Why are you talking to him?_ _He's a Slytherin; you shouldn't trust him._ Blah, blah, blah."

"But… why _do_ you talk to him?" Hermione asked. "He _is_ a Slytherin, after all, and they all seem so nasty to me."

"Well, Jeremy isn't," Lucy insisted. "Just because he's in a house where bad wizards have come from doesn't mean that he is or will be a bad wizard. Like I told Harry, you have to give people a chance."

"What about Malfoy?" Hermione asked quietly. "Did any of us give him a chance?"

Ron's cards decided to explode on him at that moment. He blinked and looked over at the girls, laughing hysterically. Hermione shook her head at him before turning her attention back to Lucy.

"I would have if he hadn't tried to steal our candy when he came into our compartment on the train," Lucy replied scathingly.

"Yeah, what's going on with you and that kid from Slytherin?" Ron cut in. "Are you going anti-Gryffindor on us or something?"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "No, I am _not_ going _anti-Gryffindor_ on you, whatever that means," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Look, Jeremy is really nice, okay? He's friendly. You just have to get to know him a bit and be willing to talk to him. He always asks how you guys are when we talk."

"That doesn't mean he's nice," Ron scoffed. "Sounds more like he's a nosy prick to me."

Lucy glared at him. "Well, you wouldn't know, because you don't talk to him," she snapped.

Before conversation could go any further, Harry burst wildly into the common room. He scurried over to his friends. "I went to get my book back," he began, "and I saw Snape with a huge gash on his leg. Filch was helping him to bandage it, and Snape said _how are you supposed to keep your eyes on all three heads at once?_ You know what this means? He tried to get past that three-headed dog at Halloween! That's where he was going when we saw him—he's after whatever it's guarding! And I'd bet my broomstick _he_ let that troll in, to make a diversion!"

His three friends sat in stunned silence for a moment.

"I'm not sure, Harry…" Lucy murmured, trailing off.

"No—he wouldn't," Hermione insisted. "I know he's not very nice, but he wouldn't try and steal something Dumbledore was keeping safe."

"Honestly, Hermione, you think all teachers are saints or something," Ron growled, earning a reproachful look from Hermione and a glare from Lucy. He ignored both girls and continued, "I'm with Harry. I wouldn't put anything past Snape. So, what's he after? What's that dog guarding?"

"It's not our business," Lucy stated firmly. She looked at Harry. "I know that you want to figure this out, Harry, but _don't worry about it_. You have enough on your plate as it is, what with homework and your first Quidditch match tomorrow."

Hermione nodded vigorously in agreement, and Harry sunk down into the chair that he had been previously occupying.

The four friends stayed in the common room for a little while longer before they finally decided to go up to bed. Hermione insisted that Harry needed to get some sleep before his big game the next day. They parted at the staircases, and Lucy trudged up the stone steps after Hermione. All she could think about was getting to bed soon so the next day would come quickly.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The next morning came early for Lucy. As soon as she woke up, she couldn't fall back asleep. So, she quietly exited her dormitory and went down to the common room. She slumped down in a chair in front of the fire and was shortly joined by Evie, who hopped up gracefully onto Lucy's knees.

"Hi, Evie," Lucy cooed, scratching the top of the cat's head.

Evie started purring contentedly, settling down in Lucy's lap.

Soon after, Lucy heard movement from the dormitory stairs. She turned her head as much as she could, not wanting to disturb Evie. It was George, stretching and yawning as he appeared from the boys' stairs.

"Well, if it isn't Mr. George Weasley," Lucy drawled, grinning. "And where, pray tell, is your partner in crime?"

George smiled back, walking over and collapsing into the chair next to hers. "Still sleeping," he explained. "I don't know how he's still in bed. I'm too excited for the match today. We're gonna kick some Slytherin ass."

Lucy laughed. "I hope so," she said. "This is the first Hogwarts Quidditch game I'm going to, so you guys had better make it spectacular."

George let out a chuckle. "Well, we'll try," he agreed. "This game could get pretty violent, considering that it's Slytherin."

The two were quiet for a few minutes before George piped up, "I think I'm going to go test the air out on the field. You want to come fly around with me for a little bit?"

Lucy perked up. "Sure!" she replied enthusiastically. "Oh… but I don't have a broom."

"Eh, don't worry about that. You can borrow Fred's," George said, waving a hand carelessly. He stood up, stretching again, and then offered his hand to Lucy.

"Are you sure he won't mind?" Lucy asked. She picked Evie up and set her down gently on the floor.

Evie stretched out, yawning, and wandered away. Lucy took George's hand, and he pulled her to her feet.

"No, he won't mind," he assured her. "Besides, it's not like we have to tell him." George winked and then pulled Lucy towards the portrait hole.

As soon as they got to the entrance hall, Lucy froze. "It's gonna be so cold out there," she stated. She looked down at the pair of sweatpants and T-shirt she was wearing.

"Here," George said, pulling off his jacket. He slipped it on over Lucy's shoulders. "Come on, we'll make a run for it. There are some warm practice robes in the Gryffindor locker room we can wear."

Lucy smiled and nodded.

The two walked to the castle doors, and George stopped. He looked down at Lucy and said, "Three…"

"Two…" Lucy echoed after him.

"ONE!" they both shouted.

George pulled open the door, and Lucy bolted out onto the lawn. George was fast on her heels. They ran through the cold air, laughing gleefully.

When they reached the Gryffindor locker room, George pulled out his wand. He tapped the lock and pushed the door open, letting Lucy go inside ahead of him.

"Oh, my gosh—it's so cold out," she giggled, out of breath.

"I know," George panted. He motioned to one of the wooden benches. "Have a seat. I'll go grab some of the winter robes and Fred's broom. Unless you're gonna chicken out," he added, smirking at her.

"I'm not chickening out!" Lucy exclaimed, plopping down onto the bench.

George grinned and disappeared into the broom storage room. He came back a few seconds later and leaned two brooms against the wall by the door. Then he pulled two sets of heavy winter robes off from hooks on the wall. He tossed one of them to Lucy, who caught them and pulled them on quickly. They were nice and warm. George pulled on his, as well.

"Come on, Lu," he said, moving to the door.

He held one of the brooms out to her. She walked over and grabbed it from him.

They went back outside, and it didn't feel as cold to Lucy now that she was wearing the winter robes. George hurried out to midfield and mounted his broom. He pushed off from the ground and zoomed into the air. Lucy followed suit. She let out a giddy laugh as she flew around the stadium. George raced her as they did a few laps.

"Today is going to be perfect weather for Quidditch!" George shouted happily.

"How do you know that?" Lucy hollered back. "It's so cold out!" As much fun as flying was, her ears and nose were beginning to sting.

"It'll get warmer by midday," George explained, hovering in the air near her. "You ready to go back already? Because if not, I can probably get a spare Quaffle to play with for a little bit."

"Well… only for a little while," Lucy agreed. "I want to get back to make sure Harry's doing all right."

"Okay, sit tight for a minute," George said. "I'm gonna go grab a Quaffle."

He flew quickly back to the ground and sprinted for the Gryffindor locker room again. Lucy flew around the stadium once more, practicing turning sharply and doing some simple dives. Fred's broom was definitely better than the school's brooms she'd used during flying lessons.

George came back soon after and tossed the Quaffle into the air. Lucy raced after it and pulled it under her right arm. The two started playing catch, making the throws tougher as time went on.

Eventually, they decided to go back up to the castle. They dropped the brooms, winter robes, and the Quaffle back off at the Gryffindor locker room and trudged back up to the castle. As they walked, Lucy realized that George was right; it was already getting warmer out.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Soon Lucy met up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and the four of them went down to the Great Hall to eat breakfast. Lucy noted that Harry looked somewhat queasy. They joined Sally-Anne, Neville, Seamus, Dean, and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team at the Gryffindor table. Conversation was, of course, about the upcoming Quidditch match.

They had been sitting at the table for almost twenty minutes when Lucy looked over and noticed Harry was merely picking at his eggs, not eating or saying much. She nudged Hermione with her elbow and nodded to Harry.

"You've got to eat some breakfast," Hermione told Harry softly.

"I don't want anything," he insisted.

"Just a bit of toast," Lucy said, pushing the plate toward him.

"I'm not hungry," Harry grumbled, pushing the plate back in her direction.

Lucy shook her head, knowing that Harry was just nervous. "You know, if you don't eat, then you're going to be starving after you win," she reasoned with a small grin.

Harry let out a hollow laugh.

"Harry, you need your strength," Seamus joined in. "Seekers are always the ones who get clobbered by the other team."

Lucy threw a piece of toast at him, which he dodged.

"Thanks, Seamus," Harry said sarcastically.

 **~LJ:TH~**

About an hour later, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione walked down to the Gryffindor locker room with Harry and left him there, wishing him luck. They then went up to sit in the stands with Sally-Anne, Neville, Seamus, and Dean. There they unfurled their surprise for Harry: a large banner that read _Potter for President_ with a drawing of a lion, which had been done by Dean. Hermione had also cast a spell on the poster that made the paint flash different colors. They waited, impatiently and excitedly, for the match to begin.

"Welcome to the first Quidditch game of the season!" Lee Jordan's voice announced magically around the stadium. Lee was the Weasley twins' friend, and he would be providing commentary for the match. "Here comes the Slytherin team: Flint, Pucey, Montague, Daley, Whiddon, Bletchley, and Higgs."

Some of the Gryffindors around Lucy and her friends booed loudly as the Slytherin team marched out onto the field. The Slytherin crowd at the other end of the stadium roared their approval.

"Next, the Gryffindors!" Lee continued. "Johnson, Spinnet, Bell, Weasley, Weasley, Wood, and POTTER!"

Now it was the Gryffindors' turn to scream and stomp for their team as they also entered the pitch.

The two teams met in the middle of the field, where Madam Hooch—the referee for the game—was waiting. After a few words to both teams, Madam Hooch gave them the go ahead to get on their brooms. She blew on her whistle and the two teams were off, soaring high into the air.

"The Quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson of Gryffindor—what an excellent Chaser that girl is, and she's rather attractive, too."

"JORDAN!"

"Sorry, Professor."

Lucy laughed as she looked up to the commentator's booth. Inside sat Lee in front of the megaphone, and Professor McGonagall was next to him with a disapproving look on her face.

"GO GRYFFINDOR!" Lucy shouted as her friends cheered around her.

Lee continued to commentate, his voice booming over the stadium. "—and Johnson back in possession of the Quaffle, a clear field ahead and off she goes—she's really flying—dodges a speeding Bludger—the goal posts are ahead—come on, now, Angelina—Keeper Bletchley dives—misses—GRYFFINDOR SCORES!"

The cheers from the Gryffindor section were deafening, drowning out the boos from the Slytherins.

"Hagrid!" Ron shouted, alerting Lucy that their friend was approaching, and she squeezed together with Hermione to help make room for Hagrid to stand with them.

"Bin watchin' from me hut," Hagrid explained as he held up a pair of binoculars that were hanging from his neck, "but it isn't the same as bein' in the crowd. No sign of the Snitch yet, eh?"

"Nope," Ron responded. "Harry hasn't had much to do."

"Hi, Hagrid!" Lucy said cheerfully.

Hagrid waved down at her before looking through his binoculars, trying to find Harry.

Suddenly, Harry sprang into action. He dove towards the ground, neck and neck with the Slytherin Seeker.

"Go Harry! Go Harry! Go Harry!" Lucy chanted, clutching on the arm of Hermione's robes.

Harry was just about to grab the Snitch when, out of nowhere, one of the Slytherin Chasers blocked him, sending him spinning off course.

"FOUL!" Lucy and Ron shouted along with most of the other Gryffindors.

"Send him off, ref! Red card!" Dean was shouting.

"What are you talking about, Dean?" Ron asked.

"Red card!" Dean repeated. "In football, if you get shown the red card, you're out of the game!"

"But this isn't football, Dean," Ron sighed in annoyance.

"Be nice, Ron," Lucy hissed at him.

"They outghta change the rules, at least at this level," Hagrid said, agreeing with Dean. "Flint coulda knocked Harry outta the air."

Hermione gasped at the thought. "Thankfully Harry's okay," she murmured.

The Gryffindor Chaser Alicia Spinnet took a penalty shot for Gryffindor, giving the team another ten points, and the game continued.

Eventually, the Slytherin team scored, and the Gryffindors all groaned.

"Don't know what Harry thinks he's doing," Hagrid said suddenly, staring up at the sky through his binoculars, and Lucy looked up quickly. "If I didn' know better," Hagrid went on slowly, "I'd say he'd lost control of his broom… but he can't have.…"

Finally, Lucy found Harry, holding on for his life as his broom bucked underneath him. "Harry!" she screamed, before clapping her hand over her mouth in horror. Hermione shrieked next to her, and the girls grabbed hold of the other's arms.

"Did something happen to it when Flint blocked him?" Seamus asked worriedly.

"Can't have," Hagrid replied, although his voice was uncertain. "Can't nothin' interfere with a broomstick except powerful Dark magic—no kid could do that to a Nimbus Two Thousand."

Hermione hurriedly grabbed Hagrid's binoculars and began looking into the crowd.

Lucy breathed into her ear, "You don't think—?"

"What are you doing?" Ron asked, looking stricken.

"I knew it," Hermione exclaimed, holding out the binoculars so that Lucy and Ron could look in one eye-piece each. "Snape—look."

Lucy gazed in, careful not to smash her head against Ron's. Snape was in the stands across the field from them, and he was muttering under his breath, looking straight at Harry.

"He's doing something," Lucy said.

"He's jinxing the broom," Hermione insisted firmly.

"What should we do?" Ron asked.

"Leave it to me," Hermione replied, and she disappeared quickly before Lucy or Ron could say anything.

The two of them shared a bewildered look before turning back to the field and looking up at Harry. It was complete chaos in the air as everyone tried to help save Harry from his out of control broom.

"Come on, Hermione," Ron moaned.

They continued to watch, and Lucy tightly took hold of the arm of Ron's robes. Then—

"Neville, you can look!" Ron whooped.

Harry's broom had stopped trying to buck him off; he pulled himself back onto it and zoomed off.

"Harry! Yes!" Lucy screamed. She couldn't help jumping up and down.

She watched as Harry hurtled towards the ground. Then he put his hand to his mouth, looking as though he was going to be sick. Lucy gasped as he landed onto the field, on all fours, and coughed. Nothing came out, except something that looked gold—

"HE HAS THE SNITCH!" Lucy screamed as Harry held the Snitch above his head.

The Gryffindors erupted in ear-splitting roars. Lucy grabbed Ron's arm and pulled him out of the stands and down to the field where she enveloped Harry in a huge hug. The rest of the Gryffindors followed behind them.

"You were brilliant, mate!" Ron congratulated, slapping Harry on the back a few times.

Harry couldn't do anything but grin.

Lucy hurried to give Fred and George hugs, as well, before she was pulled out of the crowd by Ron and Hermione.

"Come on. We're going to Hagrid's," Hermione explained as they dragged her away from the crowd.

Harry was with them, hiding between the three of them. Lucy giggled, and they formed a barricade around their famous friend. They hurried off to meet up with Hagrid.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Down at his hut, Hagrid made them all a cup of tea.

"It was Snape," Ron was quick to tell Harry. "We saw him. He was cursing your broom—he was muttering something, and he wouldn't take his eyes off you."

"Rubbish," argued Hagrid. Apparently, he hadn't heard anything of what was being talked about in the stands. "Why would Snape do somethin' like tha'?"

"Because he's an evil git?" Ron suggested.

Lucy nudged his arm with her elbow. Then she looked around at Harry and Hermione.

Harry sighed before turning back to Hagrid. "I found out something about him," he said. "He tried to get past that three-headed dog on Halloween. It bit him. We think he was trying to steal whatever it's guarding."

Hagrid dropped the teapot he was holding, making Lucy jump and Hermione gasp, "Hagrid!"

"How d'you know about Fluffy?" Hagrid asked, his eyes growing as wide as saucers.

" _Fluffy_?" Lucy and Ron asked in disbelief at the same time.

"Yeah," Hagrid said. "He's mine—bought him off a Greek chappie I met in the pub las' year—I lent him to Dumbledore to guard the—"

"Yes?" Harry pressed impatiently.

"Now, don't ask me anymore," Hagrid admonished them. "Tha's top secret, tha' is."

"But Snape's trying to _steal_ it," Harry insisted.

"Rubbish," Hagrid repeated. "Snape's a Hogwarts teacher. He'd do nothin' of the sort."

"So, why did he just try and kill Harry?" Hermione asked desperately. "I know a jinx when I see one, Hagrid! I've read all about them! You've got to keep eye contact, and Snape wasn't blinking at all! I saw him!"

Lucy and Ron nodded in agreement.

"I'm tellin' yeh, yer wrong!" Hagrid said. "I don' know why Harry's broom acted like tha', but Snape wouldn' try an' kill a student! No, listen to me, all four of yeh—yer meddlin' in things tha' don' concern yeh. It's dangerous. Yeh forget tha' dog, an' yeh forget what it's guardin'. Tha's between Professor Dumbledore an' Nicolas Flamel!"

"Aha!" Harry announced, sounding triumphant. "So, there's someone called Nicolas Flamel involved, is there?"

Ron and Hermione beamed, and Hagrid looked beside himself. Lucy furrowed her brow. The name sounded familiar to her for some reason—but why?

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: The scene between Lucy and George was originally (and I'm talking nearly 10 years ago, originally) mostly just filler to beef up this chapter. Only later did it actually become important to show Lucy's developing friendship with George; he was always going to be important to her, of course, being one of the Weasleys - but Lucy's relationship with George is definitely different later on compared to her other friendships with the individual Weasleys. I will say this now, though, so you don't get your hopes up: this is not ever a Lucy/George story; they will never be together romantically.**_


	10. 9: Christmas

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 9 – Christmas**

Christmas was fast approaching. It posed a serious problem for Lucy: should she stay at Hogwarts for the holidays, or should she go home to be with her parents? She was worried that her parents might be upset if she decided to stay at the castle, but she was very curious about how Christmas would be celebrated at school.

One morning in early December, Professor McGonagall came down to the Gryffindor table during breakfast with two lists: one for the names of the students who were going home, and one for those staying.

"Miss Jones?" Professor McGonagall asked expectantly when she reached the first-year.

"I—I'm not sure if I'm going to stay or go yet, Professor," Lucy answered timidly. "Can I have a few more days to think it over?"

"Yes, of course," Professor McGonagall replied. "Just let me know what you decide as soon as possible." Then she moved on to the next student.

After talking it over with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, Lucy decided that she was going to stay at Hogwarts. Harry and Ron were also planning on staying at school: Harry had no desire to see the Dursleys, and Ron's parents were going to visit Charlie in Romania. Hermione, on the other hand, was going home to vacation with her parents.

Lucy was admittedly a little anxious about writing a letter to her parents to let them know that she was planning on staying at Hogwarts. However, they seemed very understanding in their response, and Lucy's guilt mostly vanished after that.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Around mid-December, the Gryffindor first-years were once again in the dungeons for Potions class when Malfoy tried to start some trouble.

"I do feel _so_ sorry for all those people who have to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas because they're not wanted at home," he simpered, looking over at Harry.

Harry ignored him, continuing to measure the ingredients he needed. Lucy rolled her eyes but didn't say anything; she didn't feel like losing points that day.

At the end of the lesson, Lucy, Harry, Ron, and Hermione left the classroom together. They came up the stairs from the dungeons and were met with a giant pine tree blocking the corridor. Lucy turned her head sideways, finding a set of very large feet underneath the tree. Hagrid was dragging it towards the Great Hall.

"Hi, Hagrid. Want any help?" Ron asked, peering through the branches of the tree.

Hagrid's answer returned to them slightly muffled, "Nah, I'm all righ'. Thanks, Ron."

"That looks awfully heavy, Hagrid," Lucy said. "Are you sure you don't need help?"

Hagrid chuckled from the other side of the tree. "Tha's nice o' yeh, Lucy," he replied. "But don' worry; I got it."

Lucy exchanged grins with Harry and Hermione. However, their happiness didn't last long. Behind them, Malfoy and some of his Slytherin friends had turned up.

"Would you mind moving out of the way?" Malfoy asked rudely. He noticed the four Gryffindors and added nastily, "Are you trying to earn some extra money, Weasley? Hoping to be gamekeeper yourself when you leave Hogwarts, I suppose—that hut of Hagrid's must seem like a palace compared to what your family is used to."

Ron launched himself at Malfoy, and Lucy, whipping out her wand, shouted, "YOU SLIME—!" just as Snape came up the stairs.

"WEASLEY! JONES!" he shouted.

Ron dropped the front of Malfoy's robes from his hands, and Lucy lowered her wand immediately.

"They were provoked, Professor Snape," Hagrid explained, his face appearing from behind the tree branches. "Malfoy was insultin' the Weasley family."

"Be that as it may, fighting is against Hogwarts rules, Hagrid," Snape replied, not even bothering to look at the gamekeeper while addressing him. "Ten points from Gryffindor. Be grateful it isn't more. Move along, all of you." He turned and swept back towards the dungeons.

Malfoy and the other Slytherins pushed past the tree, smirking and scattering pine needles all over the floor.

"I'll get him," Ron growled, glaring at Malfoy's retreating figure. "One of these days, I'll get him."

"I hate them both," Harry added scathingly. "Malfoy and Snape."

Lucy couldn't help but nod in agreement, putting her wand back into the pocket of her robes.

"Come on, cheer up. It's nearly Christmas," Hagrid said. "Tell yeh wha'—come with me an' see the Great Hall. It looks a treat."

The four Gryffindors had barely started following him when Lucy heard someone calling her name from behind her. She turned to see Jeremy hurrying to catch up with her, and she paused to wait for him.

"Hi, Jeremy," she said, smiling, as he reached her.

He grinned back at her. "How's it going?" he asked.

"I'm all right," Lucy replied. "Come on; Hagrid was just about to show us what the Great Hall looks like! Unless you have to be somewhere else, of course."

"No, that sounds like fun," Jeremy replied. He looked around Lucy to glance at the others. "Will it be okay with your friends?" Jeremy asked, sounding uncertain. "I don't want to start anything between you."

Lucy looked at them, too, seeing Ron and Harry sneaking peeks over their shoulders at them. "Don't worry about it," Lucy replied, turning back to Jeremy and grabbing his arm. She tugged him forward. "They're going to have to figure out how to deal with it. You're my friend, too, after all."

Jeremy smiled, looking satisfied, and the two of them hurried to catch up with Harry, Hermione, and Ron.

Eventually the group came to the Great Hall, where Professors McGonagall and Flitwick were overseeing the Christmas decorating.

"Ah, Hagrid, the last tree," Professor McGonagall said briskly. "Put it in the far corner, would you please?"

As Hagrid moved off to put the tree where it was directed, the five students stepped inside the hall and gazed in awe at how beautiful it was becoming.

"Amazing," Lucy breathed, and her friends nodded in agreement.

They stared for a little while longer before Jeremy nudged Lucy lightly. "I forgot that I have Transfiguration homework to finish, so I should get going," he explained. "I'll see you later, though, yeah?"

"Yeah, but wait a second," Lucy said before tugging on Harry's and Hermione's robe sleeves. "Guys, this is Jeremy. Jeremy, this is Harry, Hermione, and Ron."

There was silence for a moment.

"Lucy, we already know who he is," Harry said. "You don't have to introduce us."

Lucy sighed in annoyance, and her shoulders slumped. "Look, _all_ of you are my friends," she said. "That means that you'll have to at least _pretend_ to get along when you're around each other and not just stand there ignoring one another."

"Sorry, Lucy," Hermione murmured, and Harry and Jeremy nodded. Ron just stood there, not saying anything.

Hermione turned to Jeremy and extended her hand, saying, "It's nice to meet you, Jeremy."

Jeremy smiled softly before taking her hand and shaking it. "Likewise, Hermione," he answered. He then offered his hand to Harry, who shook it, and then to Ron.

Ron hesitated, but, after a glare from Lucy, took Jeremy's hand. "Good to know you're not a complete ass like Malfoy," Ron said, and Jeremy chuckled.

"Thank you," he replied. "I'll see you around."

The four Gryffindors said good-bye, and Jeremy exited the Great Hall.

Hagrid rejoined them then and asked, "How many days yeh got left 'til yer holidays?"

"Just one," Hermione answered. "That reminds me—we've got half an hour before lunch. We should be in the library."

"Oh, yeah, you're right," Ron agreed.

"Almost forgot," Lucy chimed in.

"The library?" Hagrid asked, sounding confused as he followed them out of the hall. "Jus' before the holidays? Bit keen, aren't yeh?"

"Oh, we're not working," Harry assured Hagrid. "Ever since you mentioned Nicolas Flamel, we've been trying to find out who he is."

"You _wha'_?" Hagrid thundered, making some stray students look at him warily. Hagrid lowered his voice as he continued, "Listen here—I've told yeh—drop it. It's nothin' to yeh wha' tha' dog's guardin'."

"We just want to know who Nicolas Flamel is. That's all," Hermione said.

Lucy almost rolled her eyes; Hagrid was absolutely right in assuming that they were trying to find out what Fluffy was guarding. She didn't see much point in trying to hide it when he already knew.

"Unless you'd like to tell us and save us the trouble?" Harry asked hopefully. "We must've been through a hundred or more books already, and we can't find him anywhere. Just give us a hint—I _know_ I've read his name somewhere."

"I'm sayin' nothin'," Hagrid replied roughly.

"We'll just have to find out for ourselves, then," Ron said, shrugging.

He, Harry, and Hermione turned and started for the marble staircase.

Lucy heaved a sigh. "I'm sorry, Hagrid," she said. "I've told them to just drop it, because it's not our business. They just really want to know."

"Lucy!" Ron shouted. "Are you coming or what?"

Lucy nodded and started after them, walking backwards to look at Hagrid.

"Why're yeh helpin' 'em then?" Hagrid asked.

"Because they're my friends, and that's what friends do," Lucy replied, shrugging, and then she turned and hurried after said friends.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The holidays arrived quickly. After breakfast on the first Saturday of the break, the students who were going home gathered in the entrance hall to say good-bye to their friends. Lucy, Harry, and Ron said their farewells to Hermione before starting back to their common room.

As Lucy climbed up the marble staircase in the entrance hall, she glanced over her shoulder and saw Jeremy in the crowd that was getting ready to leave. She caught his eye, and he grinned and waved. She waved back and then followed Harry and Ron up the stairs.

The break began, and their new-found freedom had driven Nicolas Flamel from Harry's and Ron's minds. Lucy was secretly grateful, because she just wanted to have a nice and enjoyable holiday. Most of the other Gryffindors had gone home, so the common room was far emptier than it was normally.

On Christmas Eve, Lucy was in the common room with Harry and the rest of the Weasley family, along with a few others who had stayed. Ron and Harry were engaged in a game of wizard chess at one of the tables, while Lucy was sitting between the Weasley twins on a couch in front of the fire. Evie was curled up on her lap.

"This is the life, Lu," Fred said, stretching one of his arms along the back of the couch and slouching low.

"How so, sir?" Lucy questioned, running her fingers along Evie's spine lazily.

George threw his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in closer to his side. "Common room to ourselves," he explained, gesturing around the place. "No homework to worry about. Great food to look forward to tomorrow."

"In short, no responsibilities," Fred finished. He kicked his feet up onto the coffee table in front of the couch.

Lucy grinned, resting her head against George's shoulder.

Eventually, Ron and Harry stood up from the table and wandered over to the couch.

"We're heading to bed," Harry explained through a large yawn. "We'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Good night," Ron mumbled, rubbing an eye with the heel of his hand.

"Good night," Lucy replied, smiling at her friends.

The boys turned and dragged themselves to the boys' stairs.

"Will you be leaving our presence as well, fair maiden?" George asked when the boys had disappeared up the stairs.

Lucy giggled, which soon turned into a yawn. "Yeah, I guess I will be," she replied. "I didn't realize how tired I was. Well, good night, Freddy. Good night, Georgie." She stood up and stretched.

Then she turned to look at the twins. George was scowling slightly, and Fred was laughing.

"What?" Lucy asked, confused as to why George looked so annoyed.

"You called him Georgie," Fred answered, holding his stomach as he chuckled.

"Um… I'm sorry?" Lucy apologized, still confused. She didn't understand why _Georgie_ would be such a big deal; it was just a silly nickname.

"It's okay, Lucy," George said, sighing heavily. "Our Aunt Muriel used to call me that."

"Then she used to grab your cheek, like _so_ ," Fred continued, reaching over and pinching George's cheek.

George batted his brother's hand away.

"Aw, come on, _Georgie_! Don't be so shy!" Fred shouted as they began to wrestle on the couch.

Lucy stepped out of the way, laughing and shaking her head. "Good night, you two!" she called over the noise. "Don't break anything, okay?"

The boys both paused to wave at her before George tackled Fred onto the ground. Lucy turned and headed for the girls' stairs, excited for the next day.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Lucy awoke early the following morning. It took her a few seconds to remember what day it was. When she realized that it was Christmas, she sprang up in her bed and let out a small whoop. Since she had the dormitory to herself, she didn't have to worry about being quiet.

At the foot of her bed, there was a pile of wrapped presents. She clapped gleefully before picking up the closest one.

The first package was from her parents. She ripped the paper off and opened the box. Inside was a pack of red and gold headbands and hair clips. Also in the box was a king size bag of her favorite Muggle candy: Kit-Kats.

The next package was from her dad's sister. She had sent Lucy a small glass figurine in the shape of a lion. When Lucy gingerly pulled it out of the tissue paper and set it on her bed, the lion yawned and stretched out. Lucy gasped in happy amazement as the little figure shook out its mane and looked up at her. It walked forward and nuzzled her hand for a moment before turning around on the bed and lying down. Evie was lying nearby, and she gave the lion a wary look.

The next few presents Lucy opened were from her new friends. Harry had given her a note that said, "IOU: One ride on the Nimbus 2000". Lucy smiled at that and placed it on her bedside table to keep safe. Ron had given her her own pack of Exploding Snap cards, Hermione got her a pack of Sugar Quills, Sally-Anne had sent her some English Muggle candy, and Jeremy had given her a box of Chocolate Frogs.

The last present from her friends was from George, which surprised Lucy a bit. It was a small book of simple joke spells. When Lucy picked it up, a note fell from it, which she quickly picked up to read.

 _Lucy,_

 _This is a book I found in Zonko's Joke Shop in Hogsmeade. I thought of you when I saw it, so I got it for you to get anyone back who messes with you._

 _Happy Christmas!_

 _George_

Lucy smiled and set the book aside to look at later.

There were two packages left. Lucy started with the large, lumpy-looking one. She quickly ripped into it and found a beautiful purple, hand-knitted sweater and a box of what looked like homemade fudge. She found the card that went with it, and it informed her that the gift was from Mrs. Weasley. Lucy laid the sweater out on her bed, deciding to wear it when she was finished opening her last present.

Lucy picked up the final present, opening the small box carefully and peering inside. There she found a small silver locket on a thin chain. She picked it up and looked at it, marveling at how beautiful it was and wondering who would have gotten her such a thing. Then she noticed a note folded up in the bottom of the box. She grabbed it and shook it out to read.

 _This was your mother's locket, which she wanted you to have when you came to Hogwarts. She got it herself for her first Christmas at Hogwarts and wanted to pass it to you. A very happy Christmas to you._

It wasn't signed, and Lucy was very bewildered. Her mother? Surely the anonymous note couldn't mean her _real_ mother… could it? Lucy wasn't sure who else it could mean, though, unless it had been delivered to the wrong person. She shrugged to herself and quickly fastened the locket around her neck. Then she proceeded to get changed, lastly pulling on the purple sweater.

Once she was dressed, she decided to go and visit Harry and Ron in their dormitory; if they weren't awake yet, she would make them get up.

She was halfway up the boys' stairs when she met up with Fred and George, both of whom were sporting blue sweaters with the first initial of their names on them.

"Good morning, Lu!" Fred announced, grabbing her in a tight hug and swinging her around once. "I see you got a Weasley sweater from dear old Mum."

"Merry Christmas, Fred," Lucy replied, giggling.

As soon as Fred had stepped away from Lucy, George immediately pulled her into a massive hug, as well.

"And you, George," Lucy added. After George let her go, she continued, "Yes, this very warm and fuzzy sweater is courtesy of your mother."

"It looks nice on you," George said. "Anyway, we were just on our merry way to pay Ron and Harry a visit. Would you care to join us?"

"Why, of course, sir," Lucy responded. "In fact, that's what I was planning on doing, too."

Fred and George grinned identical grins and then both offered her an arm. She took one each, so she was between them, and they continued up the stairs.

When they reached the boys' dormitory, Fred flung open the door. Out of the corner of her eye, Lucy thought she saw Harry stuff something out of sight.

"Happy Christmas!" Fred called loudly.

"Hey, look," George said. "Harry's got a Weasley sweater, too!" He pointed at the emerald green sweater that was lying on Harry's bed.

"Very nice, Harry," Lucy commented.

"Harry's is better than ours, though," Fred said, picking up the sweater to examine it. "She obviously makes more of an effort if you're not family." He gestured to Lucy's to help make his point.

"Why aren't you wearing yours, Ron?" George asked, turning to his younger brother.

Ron's ears turned pink.

"Yeah, Ron," Lucy echoed, smirking.

"Come on—get it on," George continued. "They're lovely and warm."

"Oh, yes, very lovely," Fred commented, tossing Harry's back onto the bed.

"And very, very warm!" Lucy finished. She and the twins laughed and exchanged high-fives.

"I hate maroon," Ron muttered darkly, but he pulled his sweater on anyway. "You know, Lucy, it's spooky when you do that. It's like you three were separated at birth or something."

"Long lost brothers," Lucy mused, nodding. "I like that idea! Except I don't have the Weasley hair, so I don't think it's possible."

"You haven't got a letter on yours," George pointed out, looking at the front of Ron's sweater. "I suppose she thinks you don't forget your name, but we're not stupid—we know we're called Gred and Forge." Lucy snorted, and George winked at her.

"What's all this noise?"

Everyone turned to see Percy at the door, looking annoyed. He was carrying his Weasley sweater over one of his arms.

Fred grabbed it immediately. "P for prefect!" he exclaimed. "Get it on, Percy. Come on, we're all wearing ours. Mum even made Lucy and Harry their own."

Percy started, "I—don't—want—"

He didn't get to finish. The twins had grabbed him mid-sentence and roughly pulled the sweater over his head for him.

"And you're not sitting with the prefects today, either," George stated. "Christmas is a time for family."

With that, the twins marched Percy from the room—whose arms were trapped inside of his sweater—leaving Lucy, Harry, and Ron behind to laugh.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Christmas dinner came quickly. At first, it was confusing to Lucy that Christmas dinner actually took place around lunchtime, but the others reassured her that it would be an excellent feast. In the end, she had to agree.

There were piles upon piles of food on all four house tables, even though there were so few people still there to enjoy it. Turkeys, roasts, and potatoes were some of the main dishes. For dessert, there were plenty of cakes and pastries.

There were also wizard crackers scattered across the tables. Lucy had never even seen party crackers before, since she had grown up in America, and they were fantastic. Harry and Fred pulled one together, and it went off with a loud bang. It also let out a large cloud of blue smoke, and from it exploded a tall hat and a handful of real white mice that went scurrying away along the floor.

After dinner, Lucy went with Harry and the Weasleys out onto the grounds to have a snowball fight. They broke up into teams: Harry, Fred, and Percy against Lucy, Ron, and George. The fight lasted a long time, and when they were finished, they were thoroughly out of breath and drenched in melting snow. The group went back up to the Gryffindor common room to sit in front of the warm fire.

Once they were back in their tower, Lucy watched Harry and Ron play a game of wizard chess. Ron won easily.

Later in the evening, they all trooped back down to the Great Hall to have a lighter supper, since most of them were still somewhat full from the feast earlier. Lucy helped herself to as much cake as she could fill herself with and then went back to the common room to lay on the couch with Harry and Ron.

Fred and George seemed to be the only ones with energy that night. They wasted no time in swiping Percy's prefect badge, and Percy chased them all over the common room to try and get it back. It was the perfect ending to Lucy's best Christmas day ever.

After writing a quick thank you note to her parents and borrowing Harry's owl Hedwig to send it, Lucy trudged up the girls' stairs to go to bed. She collapsed happily onto her bed, and Evie quickly joined her, the new bell on her collar tinkling softly. Lucy grinned, curling up with her cat, and fell asleep.

 **~LJ:TH~**

"You _what_?" Lucy gasped at breakfast the next morning.

Harry had just finished telling her and Ron about how he had used the Invisibility Cloak he had gotten for Christmas to sneak out of Gryffindor Tower.

"You could have woken me up," Ron grumbled, stabbing at his eggs.

"No!" Lucy scolded. "Harry, I know you want find out about Nicolas Flamel and what Fluffy is guarding, but leaving the tower at night? You could've gotten into serious trouble! You're lucky you weren't caught!"

"Lucy, you're starting to sound like Hermione," Ron sighed. "Lighten up, will you? This mirror sounds really cool."

"You can come tonight," Harry said. "I'm going back, and I want to show it to you. You, too, Lucy. Unless, of course, you're too scared to go out at night."

Lucy scowled. "Do either of you remember what happened earlier this year?" she asked. "When you were supposed to meet Malfoy and instead we almost got caught by Filch and eaten by Fluffy?"

Harry shrugged. "I didn't have the cloak then," he reasoned.

"I'd like to see your mom and dad," Ron added to Harry.

"And I want to see all _your_ family; all of the Weasleys. You'll be able to show me your other brothers and everyone," Harry said, nodding eagerly.

"You can see them any old time," Ron said, waving carelessly. "Just come 'round my house this summer. Anyway, maybe it only shows dead people. Shame about not finding Flamel, though. By the way, why aren't you eating anything? Have some bacon or something."

Lucy looked carefully at Harry. Ron was right; Harry hadn't touched any of his breakfast.

"Harry, you've got to have some food," Lucy insisted.

Harry shrugged and picked up his spoon, swirling his porridge around his bowl but not eating it.

"Are you all right?" Ron asked. "You look odd."

"Sorry," Harry muttered. "So, are you two in? Lucy?"

The boys both turned to her expectantly.

Lucy sighed loudly. "Fine," she said, "but only because I want you to be careful. We're not going to be wandering around the castle all night, either. If we can't find it, then we're going to forget about it and go back to bed. Promise?"

"Promise," Harry echoed, but he didn't look at her when he said it. He was gazing into his breakfast.

Lucy exchanged a glance with Ron; something seemed off with Harry.

 **~LJ:TH~**

With the three of them under Harry's new Invisibility Cloak, they had to move slowly to avoid making noise. Harry took them to the library to start with, and he tried to retrace his steps from there.

They ambled around the castle for nearly an hour before Ron finally spoke up. "I'm freezing," he whispered. "Let's forget it and go back."

" _No_!" Harry growled. "I know it's here somewhere."

"Harry, you promised we wouldn't just go wandering aimlessly through the castle all night," Lucy reminded him, but he just shushed her and kept walking.

They went on for a while longer, but just as Ron started complaining that his feet were going to freeze off, Harry stopped them.

"It's here—just here—yes!" he exclaimed, pushing the door open to what looked like an unused classroom.

Harry was the first one out from under the cloak, practically sprinting to stand in front of a large mirror in the middle of the room. Ron followed eagerly. Lucy, on the other hand, wrapped the cloak over her arm and stayed by the door to listen for Filch or any professors that may have been wandering the corridors.

"See?" Harry whispered to Ron.

"I can't see anything," Ron replied.

Lucy shuffled over a bit to look into the mirror. All she saw was Harry and Ron standing side by side.

"Look! Look at them all.… There are loads of them," Harry said, pointing to the mirror.

"I can only see you," Ron said.

"Look in it properly. Go on and stand where I am," Harry offered, stepping to the side so Ron could stand directly in front of the mirror.

Lucy could see Ron's reflection looking completely bewildered but excited at whatever he was now seeing.

"Look at me!" he cried hoarsely.

"Can you see all your family standing around you?" Harry asked eagerly.

"No—I'm alone," Ron replied, "but I'm different—I look older—and I'm Head Boy!"

" _What_?" Harry gasped in disbelief.

"I am—I'm wearing the badge like Bill used to—and I'm holding the House Cup and the Quidditch Cup—I'm Quidditch Captain, too!" Ron babbled in happiness.

Lucy frowned; she had a very strange feeling about this mirror that continued to grow the longer they stayed.

Ron looked at Harry and asked, "Do you think this mirror shows the future?"

"How can it? All my family are dead…" Harry said. There was a beat of silence, and then he demanded, "Let me have another look."

"You had it to yourself all last night. Give me a bit more time," Ron argued, standing his ground.

"You're only holding the Quidditch Cup. What's interesting about that?" Harry asked. He stepped up next to Ron and tried to elbow his way in front of the mirror. "I want to see my parents."

"Don't push me," Ron said in warning.

Lucy whipped her head to the door, hearing something from the other side. The boys had been talking quite loudly.

"Quick!" Lucy hissed, hurrying over to them and throwing the cloak over all three of them.

They stood stock still, holding their breaths. Mrs. Norris slunk into the room and stood just inside the doorway, looking right where they were standing. Her tail swished slowly back and forth, and her ears would periodically twitch.

They were there for what seemed like forever before Mrs. Norris left again.

"This isn't safe," Ron breathed. "She might have gone for Filch. I bet she heard us. Come on."

Lucy and Ron had to practically drag Harry away from the mirror and out of the room. Harry didn't say much as the other two determined how to get back to the common room; he just followed silently.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The morning after their little adventure, Lucy was sitting in front of the fire in the common room reading a book. Ron and Harry were sitting nearby.

"Want to play chess, Harry?" Ron asked.

"No," Harry replied quietly, staring into the fire.

Lucy frowned and put her book down. "Why don't we go down and visit Hagrid?" she suggested.

Harry didn't look at her. "No.… You two go," he said.

Lucy and Ron exchanged a look.

"I know what you're thinking about, Harry—that mirror," Lucy said firmly. "Don't go back tonight."

"Why not?" Harry asked irritably, finally looking up at his friends to glare at them.

"We've got a bad feeling about it," Ron continued, and Lucy nodded vigorously in agreement. "Anyway, you've had too many close shaves already. Filch, Snape, _and_ Mrs. Norris are wandering around. So what if they can't see you? What if they walk into you?"

"What if you knock something over?" Lucy chimed in.

Harry scowled, folding his arms over his chest. "You two sound like Hermione," he mumbled grumpily.

"We're serious, Harry. Don't go," Ron finished.

He and Lucy both watched Harry for a few minutes, but Harry didn't look at them or reply. Lucy had a sneaking suspicion that he was still going to go visit the mirror, regardless of what they said to try and stop him.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Sure enough, the following morning at breakfast, Harry was quick to tell them about what happened when he visited the mirror. Lucy and Ron were both surprised to hear that Harry had run into Dumbledore, and that the professor had let him go without giving him detention.

"You're lucky Dumbledore is so forgiving," Lucy scolded.

Harry scowled, but at least he was eating his breakfast again.

"Harry, we know you want to find out more about your parents," Lucy continued softly, "but standing in front of that mirror is no way to do it. You know that."

Harry nodded.

"It _was_ really good of Dumbledore to not get you in trouble, though," Ron added thoughtfully.

 **~LJ:TH~**

A few days later, the day before the start of the new term, Hermione returned. The other three wasted no time in telling her all about what had happened. Although she was disapproving of Harry wandering around at night, she was also disappointed that they hadn't found out anything about Nicolas Flamel.

That night, before the girls got into bed, Lucy showed Hermione the locket she had received.

"It's beautiful," Hermione breathed, holding it delicately between her fingers. "Look, on the front.… It looks like an _L_ and an _E_."

"Really?" Lucy asked, scrambling over to Hermione. She had never noticed that there were letters on the locket; she'd always thought it was some kind of intricate design. Sure enough, when she looked closely, there was an _L_ and an _E_ engraved on the front of it.

"L and E…" she wondered aloud. "Do you think they're initials?"

"Could be," Hermione replied with a shrug.

She handed back the locket, and Lucy set it on her bedside table. The girls bid each other good night and got into their respective beds.

Lucy had a hard time getting to sleep that night. If the _L_ and _E_ were initials, then who had they belonged to? Was it a clue to finding out who her real mother had been?

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: It was very important to me to NOT let Lucy look (properly) into the Mirror of Erised. I have no doubt that the deepest desire in her heart would be to learn who her parents/family were, and she probably would have seen Harry in the mirror. So, while Harry and Ron fight over who gets to look into the mirror, she kind of plays lookout for them.**_


	11. 10: Finding Flamel

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 10 – Finding Flamel**

The restart of term found Lucy and her friends once again skimming through books in the library between classes for information on Nicolas Flamel. It seemed like a hopeless search, because they still hadn't found him in any of the books they had looked through.

Term also brought back homework, and the teachers were not holding back. It was as though they had realized that the final exams were now only five months away, and they were determined to cram as much knowledge into the students' brains as they could.

The Gryffindor Quidditch team resumed training a week into the new term. Harry often reported to his friends that Oliver seemed more motivated than ever. The rest of the team seemed less enthusiastic since Oliver was trying to make them practice every night.

 **~LJ:TH~**

One evening, Lucy was sitting in the common room watching Hermione and Ron play chess. Harry was not with them, because he was at Quidditch. Lucy laughed as Hermione let out a frustrated growl; chess was one of the only things that Ron could beat her at.

It was getting late when Harry finally showed up. Lucy smiled and said hello, and Harry returned the greeting before sinking into an armchair exhaustedly.

"Don't talk to me for a moment," Ron said, glancing up from the chess board. "I need to concen—What's the matter with you? You look terrible."

Harry sighed. "Snape's going to be refereeing our Quidditch match against Hufflepuff," he said quietly.

The other three were stunned into silence for a moment.

"Don't play," Hermione spoke up.

"Say you're ill," Ron suggested.

"Pretend to break your leg," Lucy said.

" _Really_ break your leg," Ron insisted.

"Helpful, Ron," Lucy said, shaking her head.

"I can't," Harry said. "There isn't a reserve Seeker. If I back out, Gryffindor can't play at all."

Lucy sat back in her seat with a frown. After thinking for a few moments, she asked, "Couldn't you tell someone that you'd be uncomfortable with Snape refereeing? Maybe Dumbledore or McGonagall could do something."

"I don't think that's going to work," Harry replied. "I don't exactly have a good excuse.…"

Then there was a commotion, and they all turned to see Neville falling into the common room through the portrait hole. His legs seemed to be stuck together.

"Looks like Neville got hit with a Leg-Locker Curse," Lucy murmured in concern as most of the Gryffindors erupted into laughter.

Hermione jumped up and performed the counter-curse. Neville's legs immediately came unstuck, and he pushed himself to his feet somewhat unsteadily.

"What happened?" Hermione asked. She took his arm and led him over to Lucy, Harry, and Ron, and Lucy scooted over on the couch to allow room for Neville to sit down.

"Malfoy," he explained, sounding shaken up and taking the open seat. "I met him outside the library. He said he'd been looking for someone to practice that on."

Lucy shook her head, anger building in her chest; she really couldn't stand Malfoy.

"Go to Professor McGonagall!" Hermione exclaimed. "Report him!"

Neville shook his head fearfully. "I don't want _more_ trouble," he said in a small voice.

"You've got to stand up to him, Neville!" Ron said. "He's used to walking all over people, but that's no reason to lie down in front of him and make it easier."

"There's no need to tell me I'm not brave enough to be in Gryffindor. Malfoy's already done that," Neville replied, his voice breaking.

"What do you mean, you're not brave enough to be in Gryffindor?" Lucy gasped. "Of _course_ you're brave; you just need to find it inside yourself first."

While she was speaking, Harry had dug around in the pocket of his robes and pulled out a Chocolate Frog. He handed it to Neville. "You're worth twelve of Malfoy," Harry finished. "The Sorting Hat chose you for Gryffindor, didn't it? And where's Malfoy? In stinking Slytherin."

Lucy frowned at Harry's choice of words.

Neville, however, gave him a small smile and unwrapped the frog. "Thanks, Harry.… I think I'll go to bed," he said, standing up. "D'you want the card? You collect them, don't you?"

Harry took the card from Neville's outstretched hand, and Neville walked away. Harry looked at the card. "Dumbledore again," he sighed. "He was the first one I ever…" He gasped as he trailed off, staring at the back of the card.

Then he looked slowly up at his friends. " _I've found him_!" he whispered hoarsely. "I've found Flamel! I _told_ you I'd read the name somewhere before! I read it on the train coming here—listen to this: _Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the Dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood, and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel_!"

Hermione got to her feet, looking determined, and commanded, "Stay there!" She ran to the girls' staircase and disappeared.

Ron and Harry exchanged looks, and Lucy took the card from Harry to read it herself. There it was: the clue that they had been looking for.

Hermione wasn't gone long; soon she was dashing back to them, holding a huge book in her arms. "I _never_ thought to look in here!" she explained, sounding excited. "I got this out of the library _weeks_ ago for a bit of light reading."

" _Light_?" Ron repeated in disbelief.

Lucy and Hermione shushed him as Hermione began flipping through pages to find whatever it was she was looking for.

"I knew it! I _knew_ it!" she screeched, pointing to the page that she was on.

"Are we allowed to speak yet?" Ron asked in annoyance.

Lucy flicked him lightly in the head, and Hermione ignored him.

"Nicolas Flamel is the _only known maker of the Philosopher's Stone_!" she exclaimed.

The others looked at her blankly. "The what?" they asked at the same time.

Hermione scoffed, annoyed. "Oh, _honestly_ , don't you three read? Look—that section, there." She pushed the book at them, pointing at a passage for them.

They put their heads together and read it.

"The Elixir of Life?" Lucy breathed when they were finished. She, Harry, and Ron looked back up at Hermione.

"See?" Hermione said. "The dog must be guarding Flamel's Philosopher's Stone! I bet he asked Dumbledore to keep it safe for him, because they're friends! He must have known someone was after it. That's why he wanted to the stone moved out of Gringotts!"

"A stone that makes gold and stops you from ever dying!" Harry declared. "No wonder Snape's after it. _Anyone_ would want it."

"And no wonder we couldn't find Flamel in that _Study of Recent Developments in Wizardry_ ," Ron said. "He's not exactly recent if he's six hundred and sixty-five, is he?"

Lucy giggled.

So now they knew who Flamel was and had an idea of what Fluffy was guarding. As nice as it was to have finally figured the mystery out, Lucy had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. It couldn't be just _anyone_ who was after the stone, otherwise surely Flamel would have left it in Gringotts. So, who—apart from possibly Snape—was after it that was making him scared enough to have Dumbledore protect it for him?

 **~LJ:TH~**

The Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match was growing near, and Harry kept insisting that he was going to play. Lucy became more worried as the days passed. She wasn't the only one; whenever Harry was not around, she, Hermione, and Ron would discuss it.

"We need to be prepared in case Snape tries to do something during the match," Ron said for what felt like the hundredth time.

It was a few days before the match, and Lucy was sitting with Hermione and Ron in the common room. Harry was, once again, at practice.

"We could learn the Leg-Locker Curse," Hermione replied. "Remember what Malfoy did to Neville?"

Lucy was doubtful. "Why would Snape try to do anything to Harry in front of all those people?" she asked. "It would be too risky to try and make it look like an accident, wouldn't it?"

"Can't hurt to be ready," Ron said. "Plus, Snape's a git. I wouldn't put it past him to do something. Come on, then, Hermione. What's the spell?"

 **~LJ:TH~**

So, for the next few days, they hid away in the boys' dormitory while Harry was at Quidditch and practiced the spell. They even pulled Ron's mattress off his bed, so they had something soft to fall onto.

Lucy was particularly sore the day before the match in Potions class. She, Ron, and Hermione had been doing some last-minute practicing late the night before. More than once, Lucy had fallen over and missed the mattress. One time her knee had painfully collided with Ron's bed post, and she could still feel it every time she took a step.

Just before class finished, Lucy knocked over a jar of beetle eyes. Cursing, she waved Harry, Hermione, and Ron away when they came over to wait for her to clean up. "Go on without me. I'll meet up with you in a few minutes," she grumbled.

The three of them left, although Hermione hovered for a moment at the door. Lucy nodded, and Hermione turned and hurried after the boys. Sighing, Lucy dropped to the floor of the dungeon and began to scoop up the beetle eyes.

"Hey, Lucy," a voice said. Lucy looked up from under the table to see Jeremy smiling down at her. "Do you need any help?" he asked.

"No, that's okay," Lucy replied. "Thanks, though."

"Okay," Jeremy said.

About a minute later, Lucy straightened up with a handful of beetle eyes and was surprised to see Jeremy still standing beside her. "You don't have to wait, you know," she said. "You can go to lunch."

Jeremy shrugged, but before he could say anything, Snape swept over.

"What's going on here, Whitlock? Jones?" he asked coldly.

"I accidently spilled these beetle eyes, sir," Lucy replied, holding up her hand to show him. "I've almost got them all."

"I was just waiting for her, Professor," Jeremy added.

Snape eyed the two of them for a moment. "Well, move along, Jones," he said stiffly. "You're not the only ones who want to go up to lunch." He moved away from them, stopping at the front of the room to clear a few things off his table.

Lucy quickly swept the rest of the beetle eyes into the jar, threw her books in her bag, and grabbed Jeremy's arm. "Come on, before he takes points," she hissed, dragging Jeremy with her. "All finished, Professor!" she called out in a cheerful voice as she breezed from the room.

As soon as they were down the corridor from the Potions classroom, Jeremy burst out laughing. "I know Snape's not a very nice person," he said between chuckles, "but it's not like he's going to eat you. Slow down, Lucy!"

Lucy did as he asked, smirking at him. "Well, you happen to be in his house," she replied. "I'm in Gryffindor. I'm sure he's itching to take points away from any Gryffindor that he sees."

Jeremy shook his head, still smiling. "He's unpleasant, yes," he said. "I'm sure he just had a troubled past or something."

Lucy shrugged. "So, I know this doesn't happen, like, ever," she started, changing the subject, "but would you like to sit with me and my friends at lunch?"

Jeremy froze in his path, and Lucy stopped with him, looking confused. "You mean, sit with you at the Gryffindor table?" he asked, sounding doubtful.

"Yeah," Lucy replied. "People sit at other tables all the time. It's not that weird."

"I know," Jeremy said. "I mean… I'd like to. Really, I would. I just don't want to cause any trouble."

"Oh, who cares what other people say?" Lucy asked impatiently. "I've told you before, _you_ are my friend. Everyone else is just going to have to accept that. And what better way to make them deal with it than to have you around?"

Jeremy let out a laugh. "I suppose I could, then," he answered. "If things don't go well, though, I'm going to bail early."

"I'd expect nothing less," Lucy shot back, grinning. "I'm not sure who's all going to be there, but just stay by me. They'll get used to it."

Jeremy nodded and followed Lucy into the Great Hall. She led him to the Gryffindor table, where Hermione, Ron, and Harry were sitting with Neville, Dean, and Seamus; Fred and George; and some of the Weasley twins' friends.

"Budge up, Ron," Lucy said to announce her arrival.

All talk around them ceased as the Gryffindors looked at Lucy and Jeremy. Jeremy smiled nervously.

"Hi, Jeremy," Hermione said, breaking some of the tension.

"Hi, Hermione," Jeremy replied, relieved.

Everyone else continued to stare, and Lucy heaved a sigh. "Everyone, this is Jeremy Whitlock," she introduced him. "He's in Slytherin, and he's my _friend_. Jeremy, this is Fred and George Weasley. They're Ron's older brothers," she continued, pointing out the twins. Then she gestured to the other first-years and continued, "You might already know Neville Longbottom, Dean Thomas, and Seamus Finnigan. They're all in our year."

"Nice to meet you, Jeremy," Neville said, sounding nervous.

Dean and Seamus waved, as did Fred and George. Ron finally moved over, giving Lucy and Jeremy room to sit down. They immediately helped themselves to lunch while the conversation slowly resumed.

"So, Jeremy," Fred said, "are you going to the match tomorrow?"

"Of course," Jeremy replied immediately, perking up. "I would never miss a Quidditch match."

"You do realize that if we win, we'll be ahead of Slytherin for the Quidditch Cup?" George asked.

"Yeah, I guess that's a downside," Jeremy said, "but Quidditch is way too interesting to get all caught up in who wins. For me, anyway. Quality of the match comes first, and teams are second. Besides, I don't think Slytherin has much of a chance right now; you guys should be able to wipe the field with Hufflepuff."

Both Ron's and George's jaws dropped. Fred looked happily amused, and Hermione and Harry laughed.

"Are you going to the match by yourself, then?" Hermione asked Jeremy.

"Yeah, I suppose so," he replied with a sideways glance at Lucy.

Lucy cocked her head at him, but he didn't say anything.

"Then you should sit with us," Hermione offered. "You don't have to cheer for Gryffindor or anything, but it would probably be better than sitting by yourself."

Jeremy was silent for a moment but also nodded thoughtfully. "That would be really nice, actually," he said. "Thank you, Hermione. That is, if it's okay with you two?" He turned to look at Lucy and Ron.

"Of course, it's okay with me," Lucy scoffed, elbowing him softly in the side. She giggled as he stuck his tongue out at her.

"Yeah, that would be fine," Ron spoke up.

Lucy's face broke into a wide grin, and she threw her arms around Ron's neck, squealing happily. "Yay!" she shouted, pulling away from Ron.

Ron looked at her like she'd grown another head, and the other boys also gave her strange looks. Hermione laughed lightly as she dug into her mashed potatoes.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The morning of the match was cold and tense. Although Lucy was glad that Jeremy was going to be sitting with them, she, Hermione, and Ron were nervous about Harry. Hermione and Ron were still convinced that Snape was up to something.

Like the last match, Lucy, Hermione, and Ron saw Harry to the locker rooms. They wished him luck before leaving to find a seat in the stands. This time Jeremy accompanied them, following Lucy excitedly. She hadn't told him about the worries she and the others had about Snape refereeing, however.

Once they reached the pitch, the four of them joined Neville, who moved over to make more room for them.

"Why do you have your wands?" he asked, looking at Hermione and Ron in confusion.

They waved him off as Hermione muttered something in Ron's ear.

"I _know_ ," Ron replied irritably. "Don't nag."

Lucy giggled, snuggling deeper into her robes. It was very cold out; almost too cold for a Quidditch match, in her opinion.

"Look, even Dumbledore made it out," Jeremy said, pointing into the stands across the field.

Lucy looked quickly to where he was pointing, and a wave of relief washed over her. Harry had to be safe if Dumbledore was present.

"Welcome to today's Quidditch match!" Lee Jordan's voice announced. "Here comes the Hufflepuff team! Douglas, Ormskirk, Inglebee, Rickett, O'Flaherty, Fleet, and Diggory!"

The Hufflepuff supporters cheered as their Quidditch team trooped out of their locker room in bright yellow robes.

"Did you catch the Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw match earlier this year?" Lucy asked Jeremy.

"Yes," Jeremy replied. "You didn't go to it?"

"No," Lucy said with a shake of her head. "How's the Hufflepuff team? Are they any good?"

"They work well together for the most part," Jeremy answered. "After what I saw from your team, though, I'm sure Gryffindor will win with no problems."

"Next, the Gryffindor team!" Lee exclaimed. "Johnson, Spinnet, Bell, Weasley, Weasley, Wood, and Potter!"

The Gryffindor team, clad in scarlet robes, marched across the field to meet the Hufflepuffs in the center. Instead of Madam Hooch, Snape was waiting at midfield for them.

"I've never seen Snape look so mean," Ron said.

Hermione shrugged.

"Look—they're off. Ouch!" Ron cried.

Lucy looked at Ron in confusion.

"Oh, sorry, Weasley. I didn't see you there," came the drawl of Malfoy from behind them.

Lucy sent a glare at him over her shoulder. He was flanked by Crabbe and Goyle, as usual, and was grinning wickedly.

"Wonder how long Potter's going to stay on his broom this time," he continued. "Anyone want a bet? What about you, Weasley?"

"Stuff it, Malfoy," Lucy spat before turning back to the match.

Ron didn't reply. Hermione paid nobody but Harry any attention; she stared up at him, her fingers all wrapped together.

After a few minutes, Malfoy asked, "You know how I think they choose people for the Gryffindor team?" None of the Gryffindors responded to him, so he answered himself, "It's people they feel sorry for. See, there's Potter, who's got no parents—then there are the Weasleys, who've got no money. You should be on the team, Longbottom, seeing as you've got no brains."

Neville blushed deeply, and Lucy clutched at her wand in her pocket. "I'm worth twelve of you, Malfoy," Neville retorted, though somewhat nervously.

Malfoy and his friends laughed loudly.

"You tell him, Neville," Ron said, not taking his eyes away from the game.

"Longbottom, if brains were gold, you'd be poorer than Weasley, and that's saying something," Malfoy sniggered.

"Oh, please, Malfoy; don't even start," Jeremy sneered.

"Whitlock!" Malfoy announced. "I didn't even see you there. What are you doing hanging out with Gryffindors? Betraying your own house, hm?"

"I'm just trying to enjoy a Quidditch match with my friends," Jeremy replied smoothly. "I know you don't have friends, so you probably don't know what it's like."

"Stop!" Hermione shouted suddenly. "Look! Harry—!"

"What? Where?" Lucy and Ron both exclaimed, looking frantically for Harry.

Harry was speeding toward the ground in a steep dive. Hermione anxiously bounced on the balls of her feet.

"You're in luck, Weasley; Potter's obviously spotted some money on the ground!" Malfoy said.

In a flash, Ron was tackling him to the ground. Lucy turned on her heel, whipped her wand out, and cast the Leg-Locker Curse on Crabbe. Neville scrambled over the back of his seat to help Ron, hitting Goyle cleanly in the face.

"Ron! Lucy! Where are you? The game's over!" Hermione was screaming. "Harry's won! We've won! Gryffindor is in the lead!"

Lucy turned to see Harry flying around the stadium, the Snitch grasped tightly in his fist. "Yes, Harry!" she shouted, joining Hermione in her victory dance.

Jeremy laughed at the pair of them, clapping along with the rest of the crowd. "That was the shortest Quidditch match I've ever seen," he remarked as the Gryffindors in front of them started pouring out onto the field.

Lucy hugged him tightly around his middle as she continued to cheer. Ron rejoined them a moment later, sporting a bleeding nose but looking proud of his friend.

The Gryffindors' cheers didn't let up for a long time; they had done it. They were finally ahead of Slytherin in the race for the Quidditch Cup.

 **~LJ:TH~**

After dinner that night, Fred and George threw an enormous party in Gryffindor Tower. Lucy, Ron, and Hermione waited outside of the portrait hole for Harry. It was getting later, and there was still no sign of him. Finally, he came up the stairs and spotted the three of them.

"Harry, where have you _been_?" Hermione asked, relieved.

"We won! You won! We won!" Ron chanted. "Guess what? I gave Malfoy a black eye, Lucy put the Leg-Locker Curse on Crabbe, and Neville took on Goyle single-handed! He's still out cold, but Madam Pomfrey says he'll be all right—talk about showing Slytherin!"

"Come on," Lucy added. "Everyone's waiting for you in the common room. We're having a party! Fred and George stole some cakes and stuff from the kitchens, I think."

"Never mind that now," Harry said, still sounding short of breath. "Let's find an empty room. You wait until you hear this.…"

He escorted them into a nearby classroom, checking to make sure it was completely empty before shutting the door. Then he proceeded to tell them about seeing Snape confronting Quirrell in the forest.

"So, we were right," Harry finished. "It _is_ the Philosopher's Stone, and Snape's trying to force Quirrell to help him get it. He asked if he knew how to get past Fluffy—and he said something about Quirrell's _hocus_ - _pocus_ —I reckon there are other things guarding the stone apart from Fluffy. Like loads of enchantments, probably, and Quirrell would have done some anti-Dark Arts spell that Snape needs to break through."

"So you mean, the stone's only safe as long as Quirrell stands up to Snape?" Hermione asked in a hushed voice.

"It'll be gone by next Tuesday," Ron stated flatly.

"Look, even if Snape _is_ trying to steal the stone, I'm sure he wouldn't do it while Dumbledore's around," Lucy argued. "Come on; let's just go and enjoy the party. We can't do anything about the stone right now that wouldn't get us into trouble."

The other three agreed half-heartedly, and Lucy led the way back to the portrait hole. She _was_ worried about the safety of the stone, even if her friends didn't think she was. She didn't think that it was worth getting into trouble, however.

When she entered the common room, George pulled her over to the table with the cakes and pointed out the good ones. With that, all thoughts of the stone were driven from her mind, and she concentrated on having a good time at the party.

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: In early drafts of this story, I called the stone the Sorcerer's Stone. At some point, I decided to change it to Philosopher's Stone. It's one of the most annoying things I find about the copies of Harry Potter that came out in America: that they changed some of the words and phrases to make it more Americanized.**_


	12. 11: The Dragon

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 11 – The Dragon**

Harry, Hermione, and Ron were still adamant that Snape was going to try and steal the Philosopher's Stone. Every time they passed the third-floor corridor, the three of them would press their ears against the door to hear if Fluffy was still inside. Lucy was starting to get annoyed with it; it was not their business—not _any_ student's business—what was going on in that corridor.

Unfortunately, Hermione had also started to worry about the end-of-term exams. She would badger the other three to study with her, although every time they would brush her off.

"Hermione, the exams are _ages_ away," Harry told her one evening in the common room.

Hermione glared at him. "Ten weeks," she snapped. "That's not ages. That's like a _second_ to Nicolas Flamel!"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Yes, but we're not six hundred years old, Hermione," she reminded her friend.

"Anyway, why are you studying?" Ron asked in an annoyed tone. "You already know it all."

Lucy groaned, putting her head in her hands. That was Ron, always setting Hermione off on a rant. And sure enough—

"What am I studying for?" Hermione screeched. "Are you _crazy_? You realize we need to pass these exams to get into the second year? They're _very_ _important_! I should have started studying _months_ ago. I don't know _what's_ gotten into me—"

"'Mione, _please_ stop worrying," Lucy finally cut in. "Everything will be fine, okay?" Her words seemed to calm Hermione a little, and she nodded in defeat.

"Fine, you three can carry on doing whatever it is that you feel is more important than studying," she huffed, pulling a book into her lap.

Harry shrugged and returned to the house he and Ron were building with an Exploding Snap deck.

"Bloody mental," Ron murmured so quietly that Lucy almost didn't hear him; _almost._

She glared at him. She got up to go sit with Fred and George but paused briefly to pinch Ron's arm. He scowled at her as she walked by him.

"Hey there, Lu," Fred greeted as soon as she walked up to them. "Grab a seat."

Lucy grinned and plopped herself onto the couch between the twins. Fred smiled back and tossed over a pastry.

"Okay, I give up on guessing," Lucy sighed after she took a bite. "How do you two always manage to have extra food after dinner?"

Fred tweaked her nose playfully. "Unfortunately, I cannot answer that question, my dear," he said. "Then you would know one of our _secrets,_ and we can't have that—right, George, old boy?"

Lucy looked around at George with a smile on her face.

"You heard my brother," George said. "We have to have _some_ secrets for ourselves!"

"Even if I said pretty please?" Lucy asked, pouting and looking between the brothers.

"Well then, I suppose we can tell you that we go on an extremely dangerous journey to find this food," Fred said, pretending to be serious. "We risk our lives to be sure that Gryffindor house can have extra desserts."

"But maybe we can let you in on our little secret when you're older," George added, winking at Lucy.

She sighed with a smirk before tipping her head onto George's shoulder.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The Easter holiday came quickly, but it wasn't anywhere near as enjoyable as Christmas had been. All the teachers had started to pile on extra work, and Lucy was beginning to feel the stress. She, Harry, and Ron often joined Hermione in the library, who was endlessly studying for her exams.

"I'll never remember this," Ron moaned when they were gathered in the library one afternoon. He tossed his quill on top of his work and stared longingly out the window.

Lucy glanced outside, as well, taking note of how nice it looked. Then she buried her nose in her Transfiguration homework once more. Harry was next to her, reading _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_.

Then Ron announced, "Hagrid! What are you doing in the library?"

The other three looked up immediately to see Hagrid shuffling out from behind a bookcase. He was very obviously hiding something behind his back. Lucy looked at him quizzically.

"Jus' lookin'," Hagrid replied, his voice sounding guilty. "So, what're you lot up ter? Yer not still lookin' fer Nicolas Flamel, are yeh?"

"Oh, we found out who he is _ages_ ago," Ron answered brightly—Lucy assumed that he was happy because he was being distracted from his studies. " _And_ we know what the dog's guarding!" Ron added. "It's a Philosopher's St—"

He was quickly cut off by Lucy, Hagrid, and Hermione hissing, " _Shhh_!"

Hagrid looked around for a moment before turning back to Ron. "Don' go shoutin' abou' it! Wha's the matter with yeh?" he asked.

"There are a few things we wanted to ask you, as a matter of fact," Harry cut in. "About what's guarding the stone, apart from Fluffy—"

" _SHHH_!" Hagrid repeated. "Listen—come an' see me later. I'm not promisin' I'll tell yeh anythin', mind, but don' go rabbitin' abou' it in here. Students aren' s'pposed ter know. They'll think I've told yeh.…"

"See you later, then," Harry replied, and Hagrid hurried off.

"What was he hiding behind his back?" Hermione asked in a hushed voice.

"Do you think it had anything to do with the stone?" Harry asked excitedly.

"I'm going to see what section he was in," Ron replied. Lucy nodded in approval, and Ron disappeared into the section Hagrid had come out of.

A minute later he returned, carrying a few large books with him. " _Dragons!_ " Ron said hoarsely. "Hagrid was looking up stuff about dragons!" He set the books onto their table, and Lucy looked over the titles curiously.

"Hagrid's always wanted a dragon. He told me so the first time I ever met him," Harry said, scooting forward in his seat to get a closer look at the book nearest to him.

"It's against our laws, though," Ron started. "Dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlock's Convention of 1709; everyone knows that. It's hard to stop Muggles from noticing us if we're keeping dragons in the back garden—anyway, you can't tame dragons. It's dangerous. You should see the burns Charlie's got off wild ones in Romania."

"Sometimes I'm surprised that you're not doing better in school, Ron," Lucy butted in, impressed by the knowledge Ron had about dragons.

"For the record, I find this stuff _much_ more interesting than the stuff we learn in class," Ron said airily, and Lucy smirked at him.

"But… there aren't wild dragons in _Britain_?" Harry asked, his voice a mix of worry and interest.

"Of course there are," Ron replied. "Common Welsh Green and Hebridean Blacks. The Ministry of Magic has a job hushing them up, I can tell you. Our kind have to keep putting spells on Muggles who've spotted them, to make them forget."

"Well, maybe Hagrid was just looking up information for fun, since he seems so interested," Lucy suggested.

"If that was the case, then I think he'd be up here a lot more often," Harry countered.

Lucy shrugged and nodded.

"So, what on earth's Hagrid up to?" Hermione asked in a quiet voice.

The four students looked around at each other, at a loss for why Hagrid seemed to suddenly have such a strong interest in dragons.

 **~LJ:TH~**

An hour later, the four of them rushed across the grounds to Hagrid's hut. The curtains were all pulled shut. They pounded on the door for a minute before Hagrid's voice finally answered, asking who it was. When he heard it was the four of them, he let them in. The door was shut firmly as soon as Lucy, the last in line, had skirted inside.

It was boiling hot inside the hut, and Lucy immediately rolled up the sleeves of her uniform. Hagrid busied himself by making some tea and offering them sandwiches, which they all refused.

"So—yeh wanted to ask me somethin'?" Hagrid prompted them as soon as they were all sitting with their tea.

"Yes," Harry piped up right away. "We were wondering if you could tell us what's guarding the Philosopher's Stone, apart from Fluffy."

"Subtle, Harry," Lucy muttered.

Hagrid frowned at Harry. "O' course I can't," he replied. "Number one, I don' know meself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn' tell yeh if I could. Tha' stone's here fer a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts—I s'ppose yeh've worked tha' out an' all? Beats me how yeh even know abou' Fluffy."

"Oh, come on, Hagrid," Hermione pressed. "You might not _want_ to tell us, but you _do_ know. You know everything that goes on around here."

Lucy rolled her eyes at Hermione's flattering words.

"We only wondered who had _done_ the guarding, really," Hermione went on. "We wondered who Dumbledore had trusted enough to help him, apart from you."

Harry and Ron shot approving looks at Hermione after her speech, while Lucy difficultly repressed a snort.

"Well, I don' s'ppose it could hurt ter tell yeh tha'," Hagrid admitted, and the other four could tell he was smiling by the twitch in his beard. "Let's see.… He borrowed Fluffy from me.… Then some o' the teachers did enchantments.… Professor Sprout—Professor Flitwick—Professor McGonagall—Professor Quirrell—an' Dumbledore himself did somethin', o' course. Hang on, I've forgotten someone. Oh, yeah, Professor Snape."

" _Snape_?" Harry and Ron burst out at the same time.

"Yeah," Hagrid confirmed with a nod of his head. "Yer still not on abou' tha', are yeh? Look, Snape helped _protect_ the stone. He's not abou' ter steal it."

"You're the only one who knows how to get past Fluffy, aren't you, Hagrid?" Harry asked nervously. "You wouldn't tell anyone, would you? Not even one of the teachers?"

"Not a soul knows except me an' Dumbledore," Hagrid proclaimed proudly.

"Well, that's something," Harry muttered under his breath—Hagrid seemed to be the only one who missed it. Then Harry asked, "Hagrid, can we have a window open? I'm boiling."

"Can't, Harry, sorry," Hagrid replied, glancing quickly towards the fire.

The other four looked at the fire for the first time since they'd entered the hut.

"Hagrid—what's _that_?" Harry asked.

Lucy leaned forward to confirm her suspicions, and she was correct. It was a dragon egg, huge and jet black.

"Ah.… Tha's—er…" Hagrid trailed off, looking uncomfortable.

Ron got up and moved towards the fire for a better look. "Where did you get it, Hagrid?" he asked curiously. "It must've cost you a fortune."

"Won it," Hagrid replied simply. "Las' night. I was down in the village havin' a few drinks an' got into a game o' cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad ter get rid of it, teh be honest."

"Who wouldn't have been glad to get rid of one of those?" Lucy asked incredulously, staring at Hagrid like he had lost his mind.

"What are you going to do with it when it's hatched?" Hermione asked anxiously.

"Well, I've bin doin' some readin'," Hagrid replied easily, as though hatching a dragon in a fireplace was perfectly normal. He reached over to his bed and pulled out a large book that was hidden under his pillow. "Got this outta the library— _Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit_ —it's a bit outta date, o' course, but it's all in 'ere. Keep the egg in the fire, 'cause their mothers breathe on 'em, see. When it hatches, feed it on a bucket o' brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour. An' see here—how ter recognize diff'rent eggs—wha' I got there's a Norwegian Ridgeback. They're rare, them." Hagrid shut the book, looking like a proud father.

"Hagrid," Hermione insisted, "you live in a _wooden_ _house_."

Hagrid either didn't hear her or chose not to listen. He stoked the fire a few times, starting to hum. Lucy shook her head; if Hagrid wasn't careful, he was going to get himself fired.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Days went by, and the four first-years were constantly worrying about their gamekeeper friend. Lucy still didn't know what he was going to do once the dragon egg hatched. There was no way he could keep it; or, at least, he wouldn't be able to keep it for long.

Meanwhile, homework was still being piled on them as the professors insisted that they learn as much as possible before the end-of-term exams. Hermione, who had set up her own study schedule weeks ago, decided to also make up schedules for Lucy, Harry, and Ron. When they weren't sleeping, eating, or in class, they were doing schoolwork. The only time Lucy felt truly relaxed these days was when she was lying in her four-poster bed as she dozed off for the night.

"Wonder what it's like to have a peaceful life," Ron moaned one night while he and Lucy were working on a particularly difficult Potions essay.

"You and me both, brother," Lucy grumbled back.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Only a few days later, Hedwig brought Harry a note. It was from Hagrid, and all it said was _It's hatching_. Lucy exchanged a worried look with Hermione.

"Let's bunk off Herbology," Ron piped up.

Hermione shot a look at him. "No way," she snapped.

"Hermione, how many times in our lives are we going to see a dragon hatching?" Ron asked.

Lucy tapped his arm nervously. "Keep your voice down, Ron," she murmured, but neither he nor Hermione seemed to hear her.

"We've got lessons!" Hermione started ranting. "We'll get into trouble! Which is nothing compared to what Hagrid's going to be in when someone finds out what he's doing—!"

"Shut up!" Harry hissed, casting a glance over Lucy's and Hermione's shoulders.

Lucy stole a look behind her, as well, and saw Malfoy standing frozen just a little way away with an odd look on his face. Lucy turned back around, meeting Harry's eyes, and she knew what he was thinking: _what had Malfoy heard, if anything?_

 **~LJ:TH~**

On the way to Herbology, Hermione and Ron continued to bicker, causing Lucy and Harry to shush them periodically when their voices got too loud. Hermione finally agreed to visit Hagrid during their morning break, which was directly after Herbology.

Hagrid met them outside his hut as soon as class was over, whispering, "It's nearly out." He excitedly showed them in, making sure to close the door tightly behind them.

The five of them took seats around the table, where the egg was now sitting. There were many cracks all over it.

They only had to wait a few minutes before there was a large scratching sound. The egg split open rather violently, sending Lucy and Hermione leaping back from the table in surprise. Hagrid, Ron, and Harry, on the other hand, all leaned forward to look at the baby dragon, which flopped ungracefully onto the tabletop.

It was a skinny, black little thing with wide orange eyes and tiny bumps where its horns were meant to be. It turned about a bit on the table and let out a sneeze, spraying a few sparks from its nose. Harry and Ron now backed away, avoiding the fire.

"Isn't he _beautiful_?" Hagrid breathed in awe. He moved to pat the dragon on its head, but it snapped at his fingers. Hagrid didn't seem fazed at all, announcing, "Bless him, he knows his mummy!"

"Hagrid, how fast do Norwegian Ridgebacks grow, exactly?" Hermione asked, trying to bring the man a voice of reason.

Hagrid opened his mouth, but before he could answer, he leapt up from his chair and rushed to the window.

"What's the matter?" Lucy asked worriedly.

"Someone was lookin' through the gap in the curtains," Hagrid explained. "It's a kid—he's runnin' back up ter the school."

Harry was on the move the instant Hagrid finished his sentence. He opened the door a crack and looked out. After a moment, he pulled his head back in and said in a shaking voice, "Malfoy."

 **~LJ:TH~**

To Lucy's surprise, Hagrid didn't get in trouble in the next few days. It seemed as though Malfoy was intending on holding the information over them to use as blackmail.

Whenever they had some free time, Lucy and her friends were down in Hagrid's hut, trying to reason with him.

"Just let him go," Harry said one day. "Set him free."

Lucy nodded in agreement.

"I can't," Hagrid replied. "He's too little. He'd die."

Lucy let out a groan of frustration. "Can't or won't, Hagrid?" she asked a little more harshly than she meant.

Hagrid barely paid her any attention, though. All his interest was on the baby dragon, which could hardly be called a baby anymore. It had already grown about three times in length since it had been born.

"I've decided to call him Norbert," Hagrid announced proudly. "He really knows me now, watch. Norbert! Norbert! Where's Mummy?"

"He's lost his marbles," Ron muttered so that the other three could hear him, but Hagrid couldn't.

"Hagrid," Harry said firmly, "give it two weeks, and Norbert's going to be as long as your house. Malfoy could go to Dumbledore at any moment."

"And if Malfoy goes to Dumbledore, there goes your job," Lucy threatened.

"I—I know I can't keep him forever, but I can't jus' dump him. I can't," Hagrid moaned.

Lucy let out a deep sigh. She looked over to her friends, who looked as helpless as she felt.

Then Harry, his eyes widening, turned to Ron and stated, "Charlie."

"You're losing it, too," Ron replied, looking bewildered. "I'm Ron, remember?"

"No, Charlie!" Lucy said, catching on. "Your brother, Charlie. In Romania, studying _dragons_."

"We could send Norbert to him," Harry picked up. "Charlie can take care of him and then put him back in the wild!"

"Brilliant!" Ron shot back, an excited grin appearing on his face. "How about it, Hagrid?"

It took a little bit more persuading, which Hermione proved that she excelled at doing, and Hagrid eventually agreed to let Ron send Charlie an owl.

 **~LJ:TH~**

By the next week, not only were they worried about Hagrid, but Hermione was stressing herself over her end-of-term exams. They had begun to take it in turns to visit Hagrid and help with Norbert so that they had time to study, as well. Harry's Invisibility Cloak came in very handy to help them sneak out at night.

It was close to midnight, and Lucy, Harry, and Hermione were sitting in an empty common room. Hermione was the only one who was still studying; Lucy and Harry were waiting anxiously for Ron to return from Hagrid's.

Just as the clock struck twelve, the two got their wish. Ron burst through the portrait hole, ripping off the cloak angrily.

"It bit me!" he announced savagely, holding out his hand. It was wrapped only in a handkerchief, which was slightly bloodstained.

"C'mere and let me see that," Lucy said gently, beckoning Ron to join her and Harry on the couch.

Ron marched over and planted himself in between them, holding his hand out to Lucy. She carefully unwrapped the handkerchief to look at the bite. At this point, it didn't look too bad, and she rewrapped it carefully but tightly. She pulled a roll of spellotape out of her backpack and taped the handkerchief, so it wouldn't fall off.

As she did this, Ron continued his rant. "I'm not going to be able to hold a quill for a week," he moaned. "I tell you, that dragon's the most horrible animal I've ever met, but the way Hagrid goes on about it, you'd think it was a fluffy little bunny rabbit. When it bit me, he told me off for frightening it! And when I left, he was singing it a lullaby."

Before anyone could say anything else, there was a sharp tap on a nearby window.

Harry jumped up. "It's Hedwig!" he exclaimed, rushing to let the owl in. "She'll have Charlie's answer!"

Hedwig flew over and landed on the table, holding her leg out towards Hermione. Hermione pulled the parchment off and read it aloud for the other three to hear. Lucy leaned forward and stroked Hedwig's snow-white feathers as Hermione read Charlie's answer.

"So basically, we have to get Norbert to the tallest tower at midnight?" Lucy clarified once Hermione was finished.

"We've got the Invisibility Cloak," Harry said. "It shouldn't be too difficult—I think the cloak's big enough to cover two or three of us and Norbert."

"Again, taking a _dragon_ to the _tallest tower_ at _midnight_?" Lucy repeated. "Are you _nuts_?"

"Then you can stay here, Lucy," Ron retorted.

That shut Lucy up right away. As crazy as the idea was, she knew that they had to do it, to get rid of Norbert—and keep Hagrid out of trouble.

 **~LJ:TH~**

"My hand," Ron moaned quietly as Lucy took the handkerchief off the next morning before they went down to breakfast. The four of them were huddled in a corner of the common room to keep the injury out of sight.

"Merlin, it's really swollen," Lucy murmured worriedly before she wrapped it back up. "Do you think he should go to Madam Pomfrey?" she asked, looking at Harry and Hermione.

Ron shook his head fearfully.

"We'll wait and see if it gets worse," Hermione consoled him.

"I can't go to the hospital wing," Ron insisted. "Then I'll have to tell Madam Pomfrey that there's a dragon around here."

"I know, but if it _does_ get any worse, Ron, you're going to have to go," Hermione reasoned. "That bite could be more dangerous than it seems."

 **~LJ:TH~**

Luck was not on Ron's side. After lunch, Lucy checked under the handkerchief to see if the swelling had gone down at all. Instead, the skin around the bite had turned a violent shade of green.

"Ron, you have to go to the hospital wing," Lucy insisted. "You _have_ to. That looks like Norbert's fangs had some kind of poison in them."

So, Ron grudgingly excused himself to go to the hospital wing, while Lucy, Harry, and Hermione finished their lessons of the day.

 **~LJ:TH~**

As soon as classes were over, the three of them practically ran for the hospital wing to find out if Ron was okay.

"You look terrible. What's wrong?" Lucy asked immediately as the three of them gathered around his bed. "I mean, besides the obvious dragon bite."

"Well, my hand _does_ feel like it's about to fall off," Ron whispered hoarsely. "It's Malfoy. He told Madam Pomfrey that he wanted to borrow one of my books, so he could come in and have a good laugh at me. He kept threatening to tell her what really bit me—I've told her it was a dog, but I don't think she believes me—I shouldn't have hit him at the Quidditch match. That's why he's doing this."

"Ron, everything's going to be fine," Harry said.

"It'll all be over at midnight on Saturday," Hermione added.

Ron's eyes widened even more, and he quickly sat upright. "Midnight on Saturday!" he murmured faintly.

Lucy gently pushed him down by the shoulder to ease him back into bed.

"Oh no—oh no," he gasped. "I've just remembered—Charlie's letter was in that book Malfoy took. He's going to know we're getting rid of Norbert."

The other three stared dumbfounded at Ron, who was whiter than usual. Madam Pomfrey took this as her chance to swoop down on them. She ordered Lucy, Harry, and Hermione out, insisting that Ron needed to get some rest.

 **~LJ:TH~**

"It's too late to change the plan now," Harry told the girls when they were safely back in the boys' dormitory. Lucy and Hermione were sitting on Ron's bed, and Harry was sitting on his, facing them. "We haven't got time to send Charlie another owl," he went on, "and this could be our only chance to get rid of Norbert. We'll have to risk it. Also, we _have_ got the Invisibility Cloak. Malfoy doesn't know about that."

Lucy and Hermione agreed.

"We should go and tell Hagrid," Hermione put in. "We need to make sure he has Norbert ready for us on Saturday night."

"Right," Harry agreed.

So, the three of them hurried down to Hagrid's hut. The sun was setting, and they had to rush to make sure they wouldn't get in trouble for being outside after dark.

When they reached the hut, they found Fang sitting outside, his tail bandaged. He jumped up excitedly, and Lucy immediately began to scratch his ears.

"It's okay, Fang," she murmured to him. "We're going to get rid of that nasty old dragon, so it'll be just you and Hagrid again, and you won't have to sleep outside anymore."

Harry and Hermione, meanwhile, banged on the front door.

The window nearby opened, and Hagrid's face appeared. "I won't let you in," he stated. "Norbert's at a tricky stage—nothin' I can't handle."

"Never mind that, Hagrid—listen," Harry started before launching into Charlie's letter and their plan to hand Norbert off.

Hagrid's eyes filled with tears; Lucy wasn't sure if it was because of the idea of Norbert leaving or because Norbert had just bitten his leg. "Aargh! It's all righ'. He only got my boot—jus' playin'—he's only a baby, after all," Hagrid explained before disappearing back into the hut.

"If Norbert is a baby," Lucy started darkly, "then I'm a unicorn."

The three Gryffindors walked back up to the castle in silence. Saturday night could not come soon enough.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Unfortunately, Saturday night started off badly. They had a difficult time being quiet with three of them under the cloak, and so they had to make their way very slowly. Then they had to wait for Peeves to clear out of the entrance hall, so they wouldn't get spotted. Because of all that, they were late arriving at Hagrid's hut, who was crying when they reached him.

"He's got lots o' rats an' some brandy fer the journey," Hagrid said in a weepy voice. "And I've packed his teddy bear, in case he gets lonely."

A ripping noise came from inside the crate that Norbert was currently occupying, and Lucy jumped away in surprise.

Harry stepped up and threw the cloak over the crate, and the three of them positioned themselves around it. Lucy and Hermione quickly disappeared under the cloak.

"Don't worry, Hagrid. He'll be fine," Harry assured the gamekeeper before joining the girls under the cloak.

"Bye-bye, Norbert!" Hagrid wailed. "Mummy will never forget you!"

Lucy cringed as his voice carried across the grounds.

The three of them started the slow haul back to the castle. Between the three of them, the crate really wasn't too heavy, but Norbert wasn't making it any easier. He would thrash around for a bit and then pause before beginning to thrash again. If that wasn't difficult enough, they had to walk in a slightly stooped manner to stay hidden under the cloak. Lucy's back quickly began to ache.

Nevertheless, they continued: up staircases, down dark corridors, and up more staircases. Harry led them through a shortcut at one point, although it didn't seem to help.

"Nearly there!" Harry panted finally, breaking the silence.

They hobbled down the corridor just below the tallest tower, but before they could reach the stairs, they heard movement ahead of them. The three instinctively shrank into the shadows, and Lucy silently begged that Norbert would stay quiet for the moment. A lamp flickered to life, and the three students held their breath.

Professor McGonagall came into view, holding Malfoy by his ear and wearing an angry look on her face. "Detention!" she was shouting at him. "Twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night.… How _dare_ you!"

"You don't understand, Professor," Malfoy interrupted. "Harry Potter's coming—he's got a dragon!"

"What utter rubbish! How _dare_ you tell such lies!" Professor McGonagall scolded. "Come on—I shall see Professor Snape about you, Malfoy!"

As soon as their voices died away, Lucy, Harry, and Hermione hurried to the stairs of the tower. They climbed them easily, slipping out from under the cloak as soon as they were at the top. After carefully setting the crate down, Lucy stretched onto her tiptoes, raising her arms above her head.

Hermione did a little dance. "Malfoy's got detention!" she gloated. "I could sing!"

"Don't," Harry advised her, yet he chuckled at her antics.

Norbert chose that time to start thrashing in his crate again, and Lucy couldn't help but bend down to say something. "Thank you for keeping quiet in the hallway downstairs, Norbert," she said. Then she plopped herself down onto the stone floor to wait for Charlie's friends.

It was about ten minutes later when the first-years spotted four broomsticks flying through the air towards them. There were four young men on those brooms, and they landed gracefully on top of the tower.

They introduced themselves and showed the Gryffindors the harnesses they'd brought to carry Norbert between them. Then they saddled up quickly and got ready to take off again. Lucy, Harry, and Hermione bid them thanks and good night, and finally Norbert was on his way to Romania.

The three of them practically skipped down the stairs, feeling light and giggly. As soon as they stepped into the corridor at the bottom of the staircase, however, a face appeared that made all their stomachs sink.

"Well, well, well," Filch whispered, his voice dripping with satisfaction. "We _are_ in trouble."

Lucy realized their mistake too late: they had left the cloak up on the tower.

 **~LJ:TH~**


	13. 12: Detention

_**Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! I hope you have a lovely holiday today and tomorrow. And if you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you have a lovely Monday and Tuesday!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 12 – Detention**

Filch led them in silence directly to Professor McGonagall's study. When they arrived, the professor wasn't there. They took three chairs across from her desk. Nobody said a word.

Lucy knew that the other two were thinking what she was: they were going to be expelled. There was no way around it, Lucy figured. At least, she couldn't think of an excuse to tell Professor McGonagall that would help them in any way.

There was a noise, and the three of them turned to see Professor McGonagall entering her study, looking beyond furious and leading a trembling Neville along with her.

"Harry!" Neville exclaimed as soon as he saw them. "I was trying to find you to warn you! I heard Malfoy saying he was going to catch you. He said you had a drag—" He stopped abruptly, noticing Harry shaking his head violently.

Unfortunately, Professor McGonagall saw, as well. "I would never have believed it of any of you," she began in a cold voice. "Mr. Filch says you were up in the Astronomy Tower. It's one o'clock in the morning. _Explain yourselves_."

Lucy glanced at her two friends; Harry was opening and closing his mouth, and Hermione was staring down at her feet. None of them said anything.

"I think I've got a good idea of what's been going on," Professor McGonagall continued, seeming to understand that the three of them didn't know what to tell her. "It doesn't take a genius to work it out. You fed Draco Malfoy some cock-and-bull story about a dragon, trying to get him out of bed and into trouble. I've already caught him. I suppose you think it's funny that Longbottom here heard the story and believed it, too?"

Neville looked hurt, giving the other three a reproachful look.

"That's not true, Professor!" Lucy blurted out. She at least wanted to convince Neville that they weren't trying to get him in trouble.

"Oh, is it not?" Professor McGonagall bit back. "Then exactly what were you all doing out of bed, Miss Jones?"

Lucy, cursing herself for not thinking that the professor would ask her this, hesitated for a moment. Then a thought crossed her mind; why _not_ tell Professor McGonagall the truth? She opened her mouth but saw, out of the corner of her eye, Hermione shaking her head.

"I'm disgusted," Professor McGonagall spat. "Five students out of bed in one night! I've never heard of such a thing before!"

 _Yeah, because most students don't get caught_ , Lucy thought darkly.

"You, Miss Granger, I thought you had more sense," Professor McGonagall went on. "Same goes to you, Miss Jones. As for you, Mr. Potter, I thought Gryffindor meant more to you than this. All four of you will receive detention—yes, you too, Mr. Longbottom. _Nothing_ gives you the right to walk around school at night, especially these days—it's very dangerous. And fifty points will be taken from Gryffindor."

" _Fifty_?" Harry finally spoke up. His face was colored with disbelief.

"Fifty points _each_ ," Professor McGonagall added.

"Professor!" Lucy exclaimed. "Please!"

Harry started, "You _can't_ —"

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do, Potter," Professor McGonagall cut him off. "Now get back to bed, all of you. I've never been more ashamed of Gryffindor students."

As Lucy crawled into her bed that night, an awful feeling of shame crept over her. Two hundred points lost in _one night_. That put them in last place for the House Cup, when before they had been in first. What would her other house members say?

 **~LJ:TH~**

"Two hundred points!?" Fred exclaimed loudly the next morning at breakfast.

"Shush!" Lucy said, throwing a hand over his mouth.

George sat across from them, looking horrified. "But," he said, "we were just in the lead. What did you do that made us lose two hundred points?"

"We were out after hours," Lucy explained. "We were helping Hagrid take care of some business, and they caught us. McGonagall took away fifty points each."

"Fifty?" Fred asked, screwing up his eyes in concentration. "Fifty for you, Harry, and Hermione.… Who was the fourth person?"

"Neville," Lucy replied quietly. "He was trying to warn us about Malfoy, and McGonagall found him, too."

The twins stared at her for a moment more before returning to their breakfast.

"Please don't tell anybody that we were helping Hagrid," Lucy begged.

"We wouldn't do that," George reassured her. "Although I can tell you right now that people are going to somehow find out that it was your fault that we lost all those points."

Lucy hunched her shoulders and picked at her scrambled eggs. "Yeah, I know," she mumbled.

"Lucy," Fred started in a serious voice, setting down his fork and knife. He rested a hand on her shoulder and made her look at him. "Look, what you did—you were helping a friend, and there, I can't fault you. I'm still going to be your friend. You might get the silent treatment from some of the others, but not from me. Besides, it's just the House Cup," he added in a lighter tone. "It's not like you get anything from winning the cup other than some pride." He gave Lucy a reassuring smile then tucked back into his breakfast.

"Everything he just said," George said with his mouth full of hash browns, "I second." He swallowed before continuing, "Everyone loses house points. Just, you know, not usually that many at a time." Then he, like his brother, dived back into his food.

"Thanks," Lucy replied. "Really and truly, thank you."

"No problem," Fred said with his mouth full, at the same time as George said, "Don't mention it."

 **~LJ:TH~**

As the days went by, Lucy found herself—along with Harry, Hermione, and Neville—being the target of a school-wide silent treatment. The rest of the Gryffindor students were angry for obvious reasons, but even the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were upset. They had all wanted to see Slytherin lose the House Cup that year, but now it looked like they would win.

Neville and Hermione took the angry silence quite hard, both remaining quiet during classes and keeping away from other students. Harry took it hard, as well, if not worse than the other three; granted, he was quite famous as it was. He even tried to resign from the Quidditch team, but Oliver wouldn't let him.

Lucy, on the other hand, kept her head held high; after what Fred and George had told her, she felt like nothing could touch her. Like they had said, it was only the House Cup. And, though it would have been nice to beat Slytherin, there was always next year.

So, Lucy, Harry, Ron, and Hermione threw themselves into studying for their exams, which were steadily creeping closer. Ron stood faithfully beside his friends, something which Lucy was grateful for. She knew that if he hadn't been in the hospital wing, he would've been in detention with them, as well.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Then one day, Lucy, Hermione, and Ron were studying for their Astronomy exam when Harry hurried up to them.

"I heard," he panted, "Quirrell—he was in an empty classroom—he sounded like he was giving up. When he came out, he looked like he was going to cry—"

"Snape's done it, then!" Ron exclaimed, earning him a shush from Lucy to keep his voice down. "If Quirrell's told him how to break his anti-Dark spell—"

"There's still Fluffy, though," Hermione reminded them.

"Maybe Snape's found out how to get past him without asking Hagrid," Ron replied, motioning to the bookshelves around them. "I bet there's a book somewhere in here telling you how to get past a giant three-headed dog. So, what do we do, Harry?"

"We shouldn't get involved, Ron," Lucy interrupted. "We've gotten into enough trouble recently as it is. We're not even supposed to know about all of this."

"We should go to Dumbledore," Hermione countered. "That's what we should have done ages ago. If we try anything ourselves, we'll be thrown out for sure."

"But we've got no _proof_!" Harry sighed. "Quirrell's too scared to back us up. Snape's only got to say he doesn't know how the troll got in on Halloween, and that he was nowhere near the third floor—who do you think they'll believe, him or us? It's not exactly a secret that we hate him. Dumbledore'll think we made it up to get him sacked. And Filch wouldn't help us if his life depended on it. He's too friendly with Snape, and the more students that get thrown out, the better, he'll think. Besides, Lucy right; we're not supposed to know about the stone or Fluffy. That'll take a lot of explaining."

Lucy nodded slowly, and with one glance, she could tell that Hermione was convinced, too.

Ron started, "But if we just do a bit of poking around—"

"No," Harry interrupted firmly, "we've done enough poking around."

Ron opened his mouth to retort, but Lucy elbowed him the ribs. "Face it, Ron, you're outnumbered here," she told him. "Three to one. You can go poking around if you like, but the rest of us are going to sit this one out. We need to concentrate on our exams and not get into any more trouble." She gestured to Harry, who was studying a map of Jupiter.

Ron sighed and pulled his notes to him again, succumbing to his studying.

 **~LJ:TH~**

" _Your detention will take place at eleven o'clock tonight. Meet Mr. Filch in the entrance hall_ ," Lucy read aloud from the note she had received.

Harry, Hermione, and Neville had all gotten identical notes. They were sitting in the Great Hall having breakfast with Ron and the Weasley twins.

"Sounds like you're going into the forest," George said lightly in a teasing tone. He poked Lucy in the arm playfully. "Look out! There might be werewolves!"

Lucy giggled, thankful that George and Fred weren't participating in the silent treatment. They had really been helpful in keeping Lucy's spirit up.

"Werewolves?" Neville spoke up in a shaking voice. "Are there really… werewolves?"

"Nah, Neville, I was just messing around," George replied. "Don't worry about it. If you're going into the forest, you'll probably be with Hagrid. You'll be perfectly safe. How many detentions do you reckon we've done in the forest, Fred?"

"'Bout thirty, total," Fred answered easily. "That's a rough estimate, of course."

Neville let out a nervous giggle.

"It's okay to smile, Neville," Lucy said to him. "Times like these show you who your real friends are. Admittedly, it's pretty much our fault that you got in trouble, but it was mighty _brave_ and _loyal_ , what you did. Trying to find us and warn us, I mean." Lucy nudged him gently with the heel of her palm. "And _you_ thought you didn't belong in Gryffindor."

"What do you mean?" Neville asked, looking confused.

"Brave and loyal," Lucy repeated. "Two of the most valued traits of Gryffindor. You have them both."

Neville stayed silent, but Lucy saw him grin to himself when he went back to his breakfast. Then she looked across the table, where Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting. Hermione was beaming.

 **~LJ:TH~**

That night, Lucy led Harry, Hermione, and Neville down to the entrance hall to meet Filch. Malfoy was also with Filch, which surprised Lucy for a moment. She had almost forgotten that Malfoy had gotten detention, as well.

"Follow me," Filch said in a grumpy voice. He lit the lamp he was carrying and took them outside.

"I bet you'll think twice about breaking a school rule again, won't you, eh?" he chatted with an evil smirk. "Oh yes.… Hard work and pain are the best teachers, if you ask me.… It's just a pity they let the old punishments die out—hang you by your wrists from the ceiling for a few days. I've got the chains still in my office; keep 'em well-oiled in case they're ever needed.… Right, off we go, and don't think of running off, now. It'll be worse for you if you do."

Neville sniffed, and Harry and Hermione looked worried.

Lucy leaned towards Harry. "I wonder how old he is if he still remembers the old punishments," she breathed into his ear, and the two of them had to fight away sniggers.

As Lucy looked to where they were going, she realized that Fred and George had been right. They were headed directly for Hagrid's hut.

"Is tha' you, Filch? Hurry up; I want ter get started," Hagrid's voice called out from the darkness.

"I suppose you think you'll be enjoying yourself with that oaf?" Filch asked.

Lucy whipped her head around and saw Filch sneering at Harry.

"Well, think again, boy—it's into the forest you're going," Filch sneered, "and I'm much mistaken if you'll all come out in one piece."

 _Score again for the Weasley twins_ , Lucy thought to herself.

Neville, meanwhile, let out a soft moan, and Malfoy stopped dead. Lucy almost ran into him.

"The forest?" he asked, his voice unusually high. "We can't go in there at night—there's all sorts of things in there—werewolves, I've heard."

"That's your problem, isn't it?" Filch replied. "Should've thought of them werewolves before you got in trouble, shouldn't you?"

"Oh, don't worry your pretty little head, Malfoy," Lucy said. "We'll be fine." She threw a pointed look at Filch, who was smirking meanly.

Then Hagrid appeared, carrying a crossbow. Fang followed closely behind him.

"Abou' time," Hagrid muttered. "I've bin waitin' fer half an hour already. All righ', Harry, Hermione, Lucy?"

Lucy was the only one who nodded.

"I wouldn't be too friendly to them, Hagrid," Filch said. "They're here to be punished, after all."

"Tha's why yer late, is it?" Hagrid shot back. "Bin lecturin' 'em, eh? Not your place ter do tha'. Yeh've done yer bit. I'll take over from 'ere."

"I'll be back at dawn," Filch said, pausing before adding, "for what's left of them." Then he turned and started back up to the castle, leaving the five students grouped around Hagrid.

"I'm not going in that forest," Malfoy stated, sounding afraid.

"Yeh will if yeh want ter stay at Hogwarts," Hagrid replied hotly. "Yeh've done wrong, an' now yeh've got ter pay fer it."

Lucy couldn't help rolling her eyes; the only reason any of them were in trouble was because of him and Norbert.

"But this is servant stuff. It's not for students to do," Malfoy whined. "I thought we'd be copying lines or something. If my father knew I was doing this, he'd—"

"Tell yeh tha's how it is at Hogwarts," Hagrid finished for him. "Copyin' lines! Wha' good's tha' ter anyone? Yeh'll do summat useful, or yeh'll get out. If yeh think yer father'd rather you were expelled, then get back off ter the castle an' pack. Go on!"

Malfoy didn't move, but he glared at Hagrid for a moment longer.

"Righ' then," Hagrid continued. "Now, listen carefully, 'cause it's dangerous what we're gonna do tonight. I don' want no one takin' risks. Come over here a moment." He gestured for them to follow him.

Lucy hurried to walk next to Hermione and hissed, "Doesn't he realize that we're in trouble because of _his_ stupid dragon? Why is he acting like we did something so terrible when really we were helping him to stay out of trouble?"

"I don't know, Lucy," Hermione sighed. "We could have just left it alone and let him deal with the trouble himself.…"

"Friends don't do that," Lucy breathed as Hagrid slowed to a stop.

They were at the edge of the forest. Hagrid held his lamp up and pointed to a path that disappeared into the trees.

"Look there," Hagrid said. "See tha' stuff shinin' on the ground? Silvery stuff? Tha's unicorn blood. There's a unicorn in there bin hurt bad by summat. This is the second time in a week. I found one dead las' Wednesday."

Hermione let out a little gasp next to Lucy.

"We're gonna try an' find the poor thing," Hagrid went on. "We migh' have ter put it out of its misery."

It was Neville's turn to whimper.

"What if whatever hurt the unicorn finds us first?" Malfoy asked, his voice definitely scared.

"There's nothin' tha' lives in the forest that'll hurt yeh if yer with me or Fang," Hagrid replied absently. "Keep ter the path. Righ', now, we're gonna split inter two parties an' follow the trail in diff'rent directions. There's blood all over the place. It must've bin staggerin' around since las' nigh' at least."

"I want Fang," Malfoy called immediately.

Lucy snorted out a giggle.

"All righ', but I warn yeh: he's a coward," Hagrid answered. "So, me, Harry, Hermione, and Lucy'll go one way, an' Draco, Neville, an' Fang'll go the other. Now, if any of us finds the unicorn, we'll send up green sparks, righ'? Get yer wands out an' practice now—tha's it—an' if anyone gets in trouble, send up red sparks, an' we'll all come an' find yeh—so, be careful—let's go."

Lucy watched warily as Neville went with Malfoy and Fang down one side of the path before turning and following Hagrid.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Harry and Hermione were silent as they trudged on, but Lucy couldn't stand the quiet. She desperately wanted to tell Hagrid what she thought about the situation—that it was basically his fault that they were all there in the first place—but decided against it. Instead, she turned to Hermione.

"Quiz me," Lucy said. Hermione looked at her, bewildered, and Lucy repeated, "Quiz me on something. Might as well use the time to our advantage."

So, the girls did, whispering to each other as Hagrid and Harry walked on in front of them.

Suddenly, Harry gasped. Lucy and Hermione froze. They saw him pointing to a pool of silver blood on the ground about a foot in front of them.

" _Could_ a werewolf be killing the unicorns?" Harry asked Hagrid nervously.

"Not fas' enough," Hagrid replied with a shake of his head. "It's not easy ter catch a unicorn. They're powerful magical creatures. I never knew one yet ter be hurt before."

As they continued walking, Hermione stopped talking, looking slightly nauseous.

"So, there _are_ werewolves out here?" Lucy asked, more curious than scared.

"Sometimes," Hagrid replied. "There are groups o' werewolves tha' live together, but there aren' any o' those 'round here. Mos'ly nomads, if any."

They continued a bit further, and Hagrid added, "Yeh all righ', Hermione? Don' worry; it can't've gone far if it's this badly hurt, an' then we'll be able ter—GET BEHIND THA' TREE!"

He hurriedly pushed the three of them behind a huge tree just off the path. In the same motion, he pulled an arrow out of the pack on his back, put it in his crossbow, and raised it to eye level. The four of them listened hard. Lucy swore she heard the swish of a cloak being pulled through the grass.

"I knew it," Hagrid muttered when the sound had passed. "There's summat in here tha' shouldn' be."

"A werewolf?" Harry asked.

"Tha' was no werewolf, an' it was no unicorn, neither," Hagrid replied, keeping his voice low. "Righ', follow me but careful, now."

They moved on further, nobody making a sound.

Then Lucy thought she heard something ahead of them, so she froze and whispered hoarsely, "Hagrid!" The rest of them stopped, as well.

"Who's there?" Hagrid called out, holding his crossbow at the ready again. "Show yerself—I'm armed!"

A creature stepped out into the clearing in front of them, and Lucy recognized it as a centaur. She gasped quietly; she'd never seen a centaur in real life before. He had a chestnut body and a reddish-brown tail. Lucy glanced over to see Harry and Hermione with their jaws dropped.

"Oh, it's you, Ronan," Hagrid said. "How are yeh?" He took a few steps forward and held out his hand to shake Ronan's.

"Good evening to you, Hagrid," Ronan said in a deep, even voice. "Were you going to shoot me?"

"Can't be too careful, Ronan," Hagrid answered. He still held his crossbow tightly in his hands, although it was no longer pointed directly at the centaur. "There's summat bad loose in this forest. This is Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, an' Lucy Jones, by the way. Students up at the school. This is Ronan, you three. He's a centaur."

"We noticed," Hermione said in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Good evening," Ronan said. "Students, are you? Do you learn much up at the school?"

"Erm," Harry said, not knowing how to answer.

"A bit," Hermione supplied.

"A bit. Well, that's something," Ronan murmured. He tilted his head back and looked up at the sky. "Mars is bright tonight."

"Yeah," Hagrid agreed, glancing at the sky, as well. "Listen, I'm glad we've run inter yeh, Ronan, 'cause there's a unicorn bin hurt—you seen anythin'?"

Ronan remained silent for a moment. "Always the innocent are the first victims," he finally spoke up. "So it has been for ages past; so it is now."

"Yeah, but have yeh _seen_ anythin', Ronan?" Hagrid repeated. "Anythin' unusual?"

"Mars is bright tonight," Ronan simply said, as though it should be obvious what he meant. "Unusually bright."

Lucy snorted.

Hagrid was getting impatient. "Yeah, but I was meanin' anythin' unusual a bit nearer home," he explained. "So, yeh haven't noticed anythin' strange?"

Ronan again took his time to provide an answer. "The forest hides many secrets," he eventually said.

Lucy rolled her eyes. Harry and Hermione remained silent next to her.

Then there was more movement in the trees behind Ronan. Hagrid lifted his crossbow in defense, but it turned out to be another centaur. This one had both black hair and a black body, and his face looked angry.

"Hullo, Bane," Hagrid greeted. "All righ'?"

"Good evening, Hagrid. I hope you are well?" Bane answered in a brisk tone.

"Well enough," Hagrid replied. "Look, I've jus' bin askin' Ronan: you seen anythin' odd in here lately? There's a unicorn bin injured—would yeh know anythin' abou' it?"

Bane slowly made his way to stand next to Ronan, and he looked up into the sky. "Mars is bright tonight," was all he had to say.

"We've heard," Hagrid replied in an annoyed voice. "Well, if either of yeh do see anythin', let me know, won't yeh? We'll be off, then."

Hagrid led the three students out of the clearing. Harry and Hermione kept looking back over their shoulders at the centaurs.

Lucy, on the other hand, huffed. "Well, _that_ was helpful," she muttered sarcastically. "Seriously, do they ever just give an answer when they're asked a question? And I mean a direct answer—not any of that poetic stuff they were spouting."

"Never," Hagrid started, "try an' get a straight answer out of a centaur. Ruddy stargazers. Not interested in anythin' closer'n the moon."

"Are there many of _them_ in here?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, a fair few," Hagrid answered thoughtfully. "Keep themselves ter themselves mos'ly, but they're good enough abou' turnin' up if ever I wan' a word. They're deep, mind, centaurs."

Lucy snorted again. "Sounded like gibberish to me," she replied darkly.

"No, they know things," Hagrid argued. "They jus' don' let on much."

"D'you think that was a centaur we heard earlier?" Harry asked.

"Did tha' sound like hooves ter you?" Hagrid countered. "Nah, if yeh ask me, tha' was wha's bin killin' the unicorns—never heard anythin' like it before."

 **~LJ:TH~**

They again continued on in silence.

Lucy was still annoyed about the centaurs' lack of response to Hagrid's questions. She also noticed that Harry kept glancing over his shoulder. "Harry, it's okay," Lucy murmured to him, putting a hand on his shoulder for a brief moment. "Hagrid has his crossbow. He'll protect us."

Harry nodded silently.

Suddenly, Hermione let out a squeak. "Hagrid! Look!" she gasped. "Red sparks! The others are in trouble!"

"You three wait here!" Hagrid shouted, already hurrying away from them. "Stay on the path! I'll come back fer yeh!"

The three Gryffindors stood together in the middle of the trail. Lucy was feeling a bit nervous now that Hagrid had left them alone and that there was a possibility that Neville or Fang was in trouble.

Hermione twisted her fingers together. "You don't think they've been hurt, do you?" she asked, her voice tiny.

"I don't care if Malfoy has, but if something's got Neville—it's our fault he's here in the first place," Harry replied, staring in the direction where Hagrid had disappeared to.

"I'm sure they're all right," Lucy breathed. "Honestly, this place really isn't as scary as I thought it was going to be," she added, trying to be braver than she felt. Harry and Hermione looked at her in disbelief, and she shrugged. It was true; maybe it was because the only creatures they had met so far were the centaurs.

After that, the three of them stood in silence, waiting anxiously for Hagrid's return.

It wasn't too long before they heard steady footfalls coming towards them. Hagrid appeared, looking very angry and leading Malfoy, Neville, and Fang with him. He explained in a harsh voice that Malfoy had jumped on Neville from behind, startling Neville and causing him to send up the red sparks.

"Merlin, you are such a _bully_ , Malfoy!" Lucy spat at him, balling her hands into fists, and Neville gave her a grateful look.

"Lucy," Hagrid said in warning, although he still looked upset. Then he turned to the rest of them and continued, "We'll be lucky ter catch anythin' now with the racket you two were makin'. Righ', we're changin' groups—Neville, you stay with me, Hermione, an' Lucy. Harry, yeh go with Fang an' this idiot." Hagrid leaned down and whispered something to Harry.

Lucy glared at Malfoy, who smirked back.

"All righ', let's get goin'," Hagrid announced.

Malfoy immediately turned around and headed back in the direction he had come from. Harry and Fang followed him.

"Harry," Lucy called before he got too far away, and Harry turned back. "Curse him for me if he gets to be too much, okay?" Lucy requested darkly.

Harry laughed and waved her off, continuing away from them.

Hagrid took the lead again, and Lucy, Hermione, and Neville followed behind.

"Are you all right, Neville?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Neville replied. "Malfoy was just being a bully."

Hagrid hushed them as he led them further down the path, saying, "We're gettin' inter a darker part o' the forest. Need ter be more careful now."

 **~LJ:TH~**

Half an hour later, they were still walking through the forest. Lucy felt dead on her feet, and all her joints were stiff. There had been no sign of an injured unicorn or any creature that didn't belong in the forest. Hagrid was still leading the way, and Hermione was following him closely. Lucy followed her, and Neville was in back, dragging his feet.

Lucy paused, so that he could catch up with her. "Neville, come on," she murmured. "We have to stay close to Hagrid."

Neville nodded and yawned at the same time. Lucy looped her arm around one of his and pulled him closer to Hermione and Hagrid.

"Hagrid, how much longer are we going to be out here?" Hermione asked, her voice sounding exhausted.

"I'm not sure," Hagrid admitted. "We'll give it a while longer, I s'ppose.…"

Lucy, Neville, and Hermione all sighed heavily as they continued to tramp through the undergrowth.

Then suddenly, Hermione froze, and Lucy and Neville walked headlong into her.

"'Mione," Lucy grumbled, "please give us a warning next time, yeah?"

All Hermione said in returned was, " _Sh_!"

Lucy frowned but didn't say another word.

"Can you hear that?" Hermione asked after a moment.

Lucy listened harder, and then she heard it. It was the sound of hooves.

"Is it a unicorn?" Neville asked in a small voice.

"Maybe it's another centaur," Lucy put in.

The three students huddled together on the path, straining their ears.

"Oy!" Hagrid called. He hadn't noticed that the others had stopped until that moment. "We've got ter stay together, now."

Just as he was finishing his sentence, they heard the yelp of Fang, who was thundering down the path toward his master. Malfoy was right behind him, his face tinged pink, and he looked quite out of breath. He came to a stop in front of the others and bent over, his hands on his knees.

"Malfoy?" Lucy asked, startled. "Where's Harry?"

"I—don't—know," Malfoy spat in between gasps.

"You know, you should really stand up straight and put your hands over your head," Lucy added coldly. Then she turned to Hagrid and said, "We need to find Harry. Now."

"Wait, listen!" Hermione insisted.

Again, they could hear hooves from somewhere nearby. They all looked down the pathway they had come from and noticed that there was indeed a centaur cantering towards them. As he got closer, they could see someone riding on its back.

"Harry! Harry, are you all right?" Hermione cried.

Sure enough, Harry was on the centaur's back. "I'm fine," he replied, looking slightly dazed. "The unicorn's dead, Hagrid. It's in that clearing back there." He hitched a thumb over his shoulder.

Hagrid hurried to check the unicorn, telling the others to stay put. The centaur was muttering something to Harry as Lucy, Hermione, and Neville rushed over. Harry slid down from the centaur's back.

"Good luck, Harry Potter," the centaur said. "The planets have been read wrongly before now, even by centaurs. I hope this is one of those times." It turned and made its way back through the trees.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Lucy asked in a low voice to Harry.

Harry looked at her, his eyes slightly widened. "I'll tell you back in the common room," he murmured back, so quietly that she barely heard him.

Lucy nodded.

 **~LJ:TH~**

When the four Gryffindors had plodded back up to their tower, they found Ron asleep in the common room. Neville bid them good night at once and disappeared up the boys' staircase. Harry leaned down and grabbed Ron's arm, shaking him.

Ron startled awake, shouting sleepily, "Quaffle—foul—!"

Lucy shushed him and urged Harry to tell them what happened in the forest. Harry stood in front of the fire, pacing and talking, while Lucy and Hermione took seats on the couch next to Ron.

"Snape wants the stone for Voldemort—and Voldemort's waiting in the forest—and all this time we thought Snape just want to get rich—"

"Stop saying the name!" Ron whispered hoarsely, looking terrified.

Harry didn't pay him any attention and continued pacing and speaking. "Firenze saved me, but he shouldn't have done so—Bane was furious—he was talking about interfering with what the planets say is going to happen.… They must show that Voldemort's coming back—Bane thinks Firenze should have let Voldemort kill me—I suppose that's written in the stars, as well."

" _Will you stop saying the name!_ " Ron insisted.

"So, all I've got to do now is wait for Snape to steal the stone—then Voldemort will be able to come and finish me off.… Well, I suppose Bane'll be happy," Harry finished. He fell into an armchair, looking wiped out.

"Harry, what you're saying sounds like complete centaur poetic crap," Lucy stepped in. "Written in the stars? Please. And who cares what Bane thinks, anyway?"

Harry didn't look very convinced.

"Harry," Hermione stepped in, her voice soothing, "everyone says Dumbledore's the only one You-Know-Who was ever afraid of. With Dumbledore around, You-Know-Who won't touch you. Anyway, who says the centaurs are right? I agree with Lucy. It sounds like fortune-telling to me, and Professor McGonagall says that's a _very_ imprecise branch of magic."

"Yeah, because it's mostly guessing," Lucy grumbled.

The four of them sat in silence for a while before Hermione quietly pointed out that the sun was already starting to rise and that they should try and get some sleep. The girls bid the boys good night, and they took their respectful staircases to their dormitories.

Gratefully, Lucy flopped onto her four-poster bed without bothering to change into pajamas. She barely took notice of Evie curling up next to her before she was falling asleep.

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: Like George, Neville is going to play an important role in Lucy's life, as well. I wanted to try and establish their friendship early on. Again, before you get your hopes up: this is not a Lucy/Neville story, either. They're just very good friends.**_

 _ **Also, just a side note, but I find it amusing that Lucy is so frustrated with the centaurs. "Mars is bright tonight." Yeah, thanks, mate; that's really helpful. Ha.**_


	14. 13: The Plan

_**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 13 – The Plan**

Exams were upon them, and Lucy found herself either locked in the library studying with her friends or sitting in classrooms desperately trying to remember what she had learned. The written exams were difficult, but practical exams were the most stressful of all. Lucy was extremely pleased with herself when she made a nearly perfect Forgetfulness Potion, even with Snape glaring down at her.

Harry, Lucy had noticed, was looking particularly anxious and tired. When she asked if he was all right, he merely said, "Just lack of sleep."

The last exam the Gryffindor first-years had was History of Magic. Lucy felt fairly proud of herself for listening to Hermione and studying for this exam extra carefully. Since History of Magic was one of Lucy's least favorites classes, she'd had trouble paying attention during the term, as had most of the class. Hermione was the only one who had paid diligent attention, and Lucy was extremely grateful that they were friends.

"Time is up," Professor Binns wheezed at the end of the exam. "Please roll up your parchments."

Lucy did so, cheering along with the rest of her classmates.

 **~LJ:TH~**

"That was far easier than I thought it would be," Hermione commented as they walked down the corridor. "I needn't have learned about the 1637 Werewolf Code of Conduct or the uprising of Elfric the Eager."

"Please, can we not talk about it?" Ron moaned.

"Agreed," Lucy said. "Come on—it looks beautiful outside. Let's go get some fresh air."

So, the four of them marched out onto the grounds and sat down under a tree near the lake. A little way away, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan were playing with the giant squid. Lucy waved at them, and they waved back.

"No more studying," Ron announced happily. He looked over at Harry and added, "You could look more cheerful, Harry. We've got a week before we find out how badly we've done. There's no need to worry yet."

Lucy and Hermione turned to Harry, as well, and saw that he was rubbing his scar.

"I wish I knew what this _means_!" he grumbled in frustration. "My scar keeps hurting—it's happened before, but never as often as this."

"Go to Madam Pomfrey," Hermione piped up immediately.

"I'm not ill," Harry replied. "I think it's a warning.… It means danger's coming.…"

"Harry, you need to relax," Lucy said. "Exams are finished, and the stone is safe."

"For now!" Harry shot back.

"Harry, Lucy and Hermione are right," Ron said lazily. "The stone's safe as long as Dumbledore's around. Anyway, we've never had any proof that Snape found out how to get past Fluffy. He nearly had his leg ripped off once; he's not going to try it again in a hurry. And Neville will play Quidditch for England before Hagrid lets Dumbledore down."

Harry nodded. "It's just… I have this feeling," he murmured to his friends. "Like I've forgotten to do something. Something important…"

"That's just the exams," Hermione replied soothingly. "I woke up last night and was halfway through my Transfiguration notes before I remembered we'd done that one."

Lucy and Ron sniggered. "You would, 'Mione," Lucy said.

Hermione grinned in embarrassment. "I was in the common room," she recalled, "and someone came downstairs and asked me what I was doing. I was just about to tell her when I realized that we'd already had this exam."

"So, what did you say to her?" Lucy asked.

"I told her I was sleepwalking," Hermione answered, her cheeks glowing pink. "I don't think she bought it, but she didn't ask me anything else."

"I swear, Hermione, you should be a teacher when you're done with school," Ron scoffed.

Harry suddenly jumped to his feet.

"Where're you going?" Ron asked through a yawn.

"I've just thought of something," Harry answered.

Lucy noticed that he was looking quite pale. "Harry, are you all right?" she asked again, her concern growing.

"We've got to go and see Hagrid. Now," Harry demanded before turning and heading away at a fast pace.

The other three scrambled to keep up with him.

"Why?" Hermione pressed as they reached him.

"Don't you think that it's a bit odd," Harry replied, "that what Hagrid wants more than anything else is a dragon, and a stranger turns up who just _happens_ to have an egg in his pocket?" He started moving faster. "How many people wander around with dragon eggs if it's against wizard law? Lucky they found Hagrid, don't you think? Why didn't I see it before?"

"What are you talking about?" Ron asked.

"Are you saying that Hagrid was given that egg on purpose?" Lucy questioned.

Harry ignored them both as he led the way to Hagrid's hut. They arrived to see Hagrid sitting in a chair outside, shelling peas.

"Hullo," he greeted cheerfully. "Finished yer exams? Got time fer a drink?"

"Yes, please," Ron replied eagerly, but Harry talked over him.

"No, we're in a hurry, Hagrid," he said. "I've got to ask you something. You know that night you won Norbert? What did the stranger you were playing cards with look like?"

"Dunno," Hagrid replied. "He wouldn't take his cloak off."

Lucy frowned in suspicion. The other three were giving the gamekeeper speechless looks, as well.

Hagrid continued hurriedly, "It's not tha' unusual! Yeh get a lot o' funny folk in the Hog's Head—tha's a pub down in the village. Mighta bin a dragon dealer, mightn't he? I never saw his face; he kept his hood up."

Harry dropped down onto his knees next to Hagrid's bowl of peas. "What did you talk to him about, Hagrid?" he pressed. "Did you mention Hogwarts at all?"

"Mighta come up," Hagrid answered, his face screwing up in thought as he tried to remember that night. "Yeah.… He asked wha' I did, an' I told him I was gamekeeper here.… He asked a bit abou' the sorta creatures I look after… so I told him.… I said wha' I'd always really wanted was a dragon… an' then—I can' remember too well, 'cause he kept buying me drinks.… Let's see.… Then he said he had the dragon egg, an' we could play cards fer it if I wanted.… He said he had ter be sure I could handle it. He didn' want it ter go ter any old home.… So, I told him, after Fluffy, a dragon would be easy."

"Did he—did he seem interested in Fluffy?" Harry asked, sounding careful.

Lucy held her breath, waiting silently with Ron and Hermione to hear Hagrid's answer.

"Well—yeah—how many three-headed dogs d'yeh meet, even 'round Hogwarts?" Hagrid said.

"None?" Ron guessed under his breath so only Lucy and Hermione could hear him.

"So, I told him," Hagrid continued, oblivious to Ron's retort, "Fluffy's a piece o' cake if yeh know how ter calm him down. Jus' play him a bit o' music an' he'll go straight off ter sleep." Hagrid's eyes went wide as he realized who he was talking to. "I shouldn'ta told yeh tha'!" he cried. "Forget I said it! Hey—where're yeh going?"

Harry had raced off as soon as he had the information he needed. Lucy, Ron, and Hermione tore after him.

 **~LJ:TH~**

They ran all the way back up to the castle and didn't stop until they got into the entrance hall.

"How did you know that Hagrid might have let something slip about Fluffy?" Hermione asked as soon as they had all caught their breath.

"Just a hunch," Harry replied. "Why else would a dragon dealer show up in Hogsmeade?"

"For information," Lucy said glumly, "and the dragon was for bait and payment."

"So, what do we do now?" Ron asked. He, Lucy, and Hermione all turned to look at Harry.

"We've got to go to Dumbledore," Harry answered. "Hagrid told that stranger how to get past Fluffy, and it was either Snape or Voldemort under that cloak." Ron flinched at the use of the name, but Harry ignored him, continuing, "It must've been easy once he'd got Hagrid drunk. I just hope Dumbledore believes us. Firenze might back us up if Bane doesn't stop him. Where's Dumbledore's office?"

"No idea," Lucy said gloomily. "I've never been there. Have any of you?"

The other three shook their heads slowly. They were all silent for a moment.

Harry began, "We'll just have to—"

"What are you four doing inside?" a stern voice interrupted him. Professor McGonagall was approaching them with an arm full of books.

"We want to see Professor Dumbledore," Hermione immediately spoke up.

Professor McGonagall raised her eyebrows suspiciously. "See Professor Dumbledore?" she repeated. "Why?"

"It's sort of secret," Harry replied in a small voice.

Professor McGonagall's eyes immediately narrowed as they darted between the four first-years. "Professor Dumbledore left ten minutes ago," she informed them. "He received an urgent owl from the Ministry of Magic and flew off for London at once."

Hermione gasped quietly, and Lucy felt her jaw drop.

"He's _gone_?" Harry asked loudly. " _Now_?"

"Professor Dumbledore is a very great wizard, Potter. He has many demands on his time—"

"But this is important!" Harry insisted.

"Something you have to say is more important than the Ministry of Magic, Potter?" Professor McGonagall shot back in challenge.

"Look, Professor," Harry said with a note of pleading in his voice, "it's about the Philosopher's Stone!"

Professor McGonagall stared at the four of them in shock as the books tumbled out of her arms. In a voice barely above a whisper, she gasped, "How do you know—?"

"Professor, I think—I _know_ —that Sn—that someone's going to try and steal the stone," Harry said urgently. "I've _got_ to talk to Professor Dumbledore."

There was a heavy pause.

"Professor Dumbledore will be back tomorrow," Professor McGonagall stated as she regained her composure. "I don't know how you found out about the stone, but rest assured, no one can possibly steal it. It's too well protected."

Harry started in protest, "But Professor—!"

"Potter, I know what I'm talking about," Professor McGonagall cut him off. She leaned over and picked up her books. "I suggest you all go back outside and enjoy the sunshine." She swept past all of them without another word.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Harry turned back to his friends. "It's tonight," he said in a low voice. "Snape's going through the trapdoor tonight. He's found out everything he needs, and now he's got Dumbledore out of the way. I bet he sent that note. The Ministry of Magic will get a real shock when Dumbledore turns up."

"But what can we—?" Hermione stopped suddenly with a gasp.

The other three turned to see what she was staring at. It was Snape.

 _How much had he heard?_ Lucy wondered.

"Good afternoon," he said, his voice not giving away if he'd overheard them or not. They didn't say anything in return, and he continued, "You shouldn't be inside on a day like this." He was smirking at them.

"We were—er—" Harry started, but he didn't seem to know what else to say.

"You want to be more careful," Snape informed them. "Hanging around like this, people will think you're up to something. And Gryffindor really can't afford to lose any more points, can it?"

Lucy scowled. The four of them turned to go back outside.

"One more thing," Snape added lazily. Lucy looked back at the professor, who was staring at Harry, and he said, "Be warned, Potter—any more nighttime wanderings, and I will _personally_ make sure you are expelled. Good day to you." Snape stalked away.

"I can't stand him," Lucy muttered darkly.

"Right. Here's what we've got to do," Harry whispered. "One of us has got to keep an eye on Snape—wait outside the staff room and follow him if he leaves it. Hermione, you'd better do that."

"Why me?" Hermione asked indignantly.

"It's obvious," Ron replied. "You can pretend to be waiting for Professor Flitwick, you know. _Oh, Professor Flitwick_ ," he started in a falsetto, " _I think I got question fourteen-b wrong_."

"Oh, shut up," Hermione snarled. "All right. I'll guard Snape."

"Meanwhile, the three of us," Harry went on, motioning to himself, Ron, and Lucy, "better stay outside the third-floor corridor. Come on."

The three of them parted from Hermione as they all scurried to their destinations.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Lucy was nervous to return to the third-floor corridor, and she was right to be. They had just reached Fluffy's door when Professor McGonagall appeared.

She glared at the Gryffindors angrily. "I suppose you think you're harder to get past than a pack of enchantments!" she burst out. "Enough of this nonsense! If I hear you've come anywhere near here again, I'll take another fifty points from Gryffindor!" Ron made a straggled sort of noise, and Professor McGonagall assured him, "Yes, Weasley, from my own house!"

Harry opened his mouth as if he was going to say something to her, but Lucy grabbed his arm. She tugged Harry away and led the way back to the common room.

"Harry, I know you're worried," Lucy said as they climbed a set of stairs. "I am, too. We just have to be more careful than this. Besides, we definitely don't need to be the reason that Gryffindor loses _more_ points."

Harry nodded glumly.

 **~LJ:TH~**

They reached the Fat Lady's portrait and climbed through the hole to find the common room looking very empty. Most people were outside enjoying the nice weather. Lucy and the boys took a seat on the couch in front of the fire.

There was silence for a while.

"At least Hermione's on Snape's tail," Harry said at last.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the portrait hole swung open, and Hermione scrambled in. "I'm sorry, Harry!" she cried, her voice close to hysterical. "Snape came out and asked me what I was doing, so I said I was waiting for Flitwick. Snape went to get him, and I've only just got away. I don't know where Snape went."

Lucy jumped up and threw a comforting arm around Hermione's shoulders. "It's okay, Hermione," she said soothingly.

"Well, that's it, then, isn't it?" Harry said from the couch in a low voice.

The two girls turned to look at him, and Ron did, as well.

"I'm going out of here tonight," Harry explained, "and I'm going to try to get the stone first."

"You're mad!" Ron exclaimed.

"You can't!" Hermione said. "After what McGonagall and Snape have said? You'll be expelled!"

"SO WHAT?" Harry shot back hotly. "Don't you understand? If Snape gets hold of the stone, Voldemort's coming back! Haven't you heard what it was like when he was trying to take over? There won't be any Hogwarts to get expelled from! He'll flatten it or turn it into a school for the Dark Arts! Losing points doesn't matter anyone, can't you see? D'you think he'll leave you and your families alone if Gryffindor wins the House Cup? If I get caught before I can get to the stone, well, I'll have to go back to the Dursleys and wait for Voldemort to find me there. It's only dying a bit later than I would have, because I'm never going over to the Dark side! I'm going through that trapdoor tonight, and nothing you say is going to stop me! Voldemort killed my parents, remember?" He glared around at them.

Lucy took a step forward. "You're not the only one whose family was torn apart by You-Know-Who," she reminded him. "I haven't got my real parents either because of him."

Harry looked at her, and the two of them stared at each other for a moment. Lucy nodded slowly at him, and he seemed to understand what she meant straight away: they were in this together.

"No, you're right, Harry," Hermione piped up.

"I'll use the Invisibility Cloak," Harry said. "It's just lucky I got it back."

"You got it back?" Lucy asked in surprise. "When?"

"The night of our detention in the forest," Harry replied. "I must have forgotten to tell you—sorry."

"But will it cover all four of us?" Ron asked.

"All—all four of us?" Harry said, looking at the three of them in shock.

"Oh, come off it. You don't think we'd let you go alone?" Ron shot back, smirking slightly, and Lucy nodded in agreement.

"Of course not," Hermione continued. "How do you think you'd get to the stone without us? I'd better go and look through my books. There might be something useful.…"

"But if we get caught, you three will be expelled, too," Harry reminded them.

"Not if I can help it," Hermione replied, her voice ringing with determination. "Flitwick told me in secret that I got a hundred and twelve percent on his exam. They're not throwing me out after that."

Ron stared at her, dumbfounded.

Lucy shrugged. "It's like you said, Harry," she finished. "Losing points and getting expelled doesn't matter anymore. We have to stop the stone from getting stolen."

 **~LJ:TH~**

That night in the common room, the four of them sat alone in a corner. Nobody made any move to talk to them, seeing as most people were still upset about all the points they had lost. Hermione was going through some of her notes, studying up on any spells that might prove useful. Lucy, Ron, and Harry kept an eye on the rest of the Gryffindors, waiting for everyone to go to bed.

Finally, Lee Jordan was the last person to stumble off to his dormitory, and Ron muttered to Harry, "Better get the cloak." Harry quickly left the common room while the other three waited.

"What if we're wrong?" Lucy whispered hoarsely, voicing the fears she'd been feeling all evening. "What if nobody is going for the stone? Then we're as good as stealing it ourselves."

"I don't know," Hermione murmured back. "We just have to trust Harry's hunch. I mean, there's a lot of evidence that points to the stone being in danger.…"

Harry returned then. He fished around in his pocket for a moment before pulling out a wooden flute. "Hagrid gave it to me for Christmas," he explained. "We can use it on Fluffy." The other three nodded their understanding, and Harry went on, "We'd better put the cloak on here, to make sure it covers all four of us—if Filch spots one of our feet wandering along on its own—"

"What are you doing?" a voice suddenly burst out.

The four of them whipped their heads toward the source of the noise. From behind a chair, Neville's head popped up. He was holding his toad tight to his chest.

"Nothing, Neville, nothing," Harry hurried to reassure him.

Neville looked at all of them in turn, his eyes narrowing. "You're going out again," he stated.

"No, no, no," Hermione said, shaking her head. "No, we're not. Why don't you go to bed, Neville?"

"You can't go out," Neville insisted. "You'll be caught again, and Gryffindor will be in even more trouble."

"You don't understand," Harry said impatiently. "This is important."

"I won't let you do it!" Neville exclaimed. He moved to stand in front of the portrait hole. "I'll—I'll fight you!" He held up both of his fist in front of him.

" _Neville_ ," Ron growled, "get away from there, and don't be an idiot!"

"Ron, stop!" Lucy said harshly.

"Don't you call me an idiot!" Neville said angrily.

"Neville, look, we're not going to get caught," Lucy said, trying to sound reassuring. "Don't worry—"

"I don't think you should be breaking any more rules!" Neville shot back.

"Neither do we, but this is more important than just breaking some silly rules," Lucy argued, with Harry nodding in agreement.

"What could be so important that you need to go out after hours?" Neville asked.

"Neville, don't be a prat," Ron complained. "Get out of the way."

"You were the ones who told me to stand up to people!" Neville replied indignantly.

"Yes, but not to _us_ ," Ron sighed, acting as though Neville should have known this. "Neville, you don't know what you're doing." He took a step towards Neville, who dropped his toad.

"Go on then! Try and hit me!" Neville shot back. "I'm ready!"

"Do something!" Harry hissed urgently at Hermione.

She nodded her head once before stepping forward. "Neville," she said calmly, "I'm really, really sorry about this." She pointed her wand at the boy and said, " _Petrificus Totalus_!"

Neville's arms and legs immediately clamped themselves to his sides, and his entire body became immobile. Then he fell forward onto his face. Lucy winced. She and Hermione both rushed to his side and turned him over onto his back.

"What have you done to him?" Harry murmured, standing behind the girls.

"It's the full Body-Bind," Hermione said, sounding upset. "Oh, Neville, I'm so sorry."

"We had to, Neville, but there's no time to explain," Harry added.

"You'll understand later, Neville," Ron finished.

Harry held up the Invisibility Cloak and threw it over his and Hermione's shoulders. Ron joined them quickly.

Lucy took an extra second to look at Neville lying on the floor. "I'm sorry, Neville," she whispered. "You're a brave boy, but this has to be done." Then she joined her friends under the cloak.

They exited through the portrait hole and made their way down the corridors slowly and silently. They only saw Mrs. Norris one time, at which point Ron made a plea to his friends to let him kick her. Harry dragged him away without a word.

They had just reached the third floor when they saw Peeves bobbing along the corridor.

"Who's there?" he called out suddenly. The four students stopped instantly; he must have heard their footsteps. "Know you're there, even if I can't see you," Peeves said. "Are you ghoulie or ghostie or wee student beastie?" He rose a little higher into the air, staring right through them. "Should call Filch, I should, if something's a-creeping around unseen."

"Peeves," Harry suddenly said, his voice low and hoarse. Lucy whipped her head around to look at him incredulously, but he went on, "The Bloody Baron has his own reasons for being invisible."

Lucy's mouth fell open. She turned back to Peeves, who was looking shocked, as well.

"So sorry, your bloodiness, Mr. Baron, sir," he began. "My mistake, my mistake—I didn't see you—of course I didn't—you're invisible. Forgive old Peevsie his little joke, sir."

"I have business here, Peeves," Harry replied coldly. "Stay away from this place tonight."

"I will, sir; I most certainly will," Peeves said immediately. "Hope your business goes well, Baron. I'll not bother you." He floated off quickly.

" _Brilliant_ , Harry!" Ron murmured excitedly.

"I thought we were so in trouble," Lucy breathed next to them.

Harry grinned but didn't say anything. He led the three of them to the door that Fluffy was behind, which was already cracked open.

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: This chapter and the next used to be one. It was so long that I had to find somewhere to chop it in half, and this spot seemed like the best place to do so.**_


	15. 14: Past Fluffy

_**Happy New Years Eve! Good-bye 2018, hello 2019! Hope you have a very safe New Year!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 14 – Past Fluffy**

"Well, there you are. Snape's already got past Fluffy," Harry said.

The four of them lingered outside the door.

Harry sighed and spoke up again, saying, "If you want to go back, I won't blame you. You can take the cloak. I won't need it now."

Lucy was shaking her head before he was even finished talking.

"Don't be stupid," Ron said.

"We're coming with you," Hermione insisted.

"Besides, do you think you could do this without us?" Lucy finished.

Harry looked at each of them in turn and then turned back to the door. He led the way inside the room.

All three of Fluffy's heads turned to look at the door. It must have known that they were there, even though it couldn't see them. It began sniffing frantically in their direction.

"What's at its feet?" Hermione whispered.

"Looks like a harp," Ron answered. "Snape must have left it there."

"It must wake up the moment you stop playing," Harry speculated. "Well, here goes.…" He fumbled around for the flute in his robes for a moment before pulling it out and putting it up to his mouth. He blew into it; it sounded a bit shrill.

Fluffy's eyes, however, immediately drooped.

"Keep going, Harry," Lucy whispered.

Harry continued, making sure not to pause for too long to draw breath, and Fluffy began to get sleepier and sleepier. It slowly lowered itself to the ground. As soon as it was fully laid out on the floor, it started snoring.

"Keep playing," Ron urged Harry, and they slowly pulled the cloak off.

Fluffy was still fast asleep, so they tiptoed over to the trapdoor, Harry continuing to use the flute.

"I think we'll be able to pull the door open," Ron said, examining the trapdoor. "Want to go first, Hermione?"

"No, I don't!" Hermione exclaimed, her voice high.

Ron looked at Lucy, who put her hands up in mock surrender. "I would really rather not, unless none of you want to go," she said.

"All right," Ron sighed. He hopped over one of Fluffy's legs to the ring handle of the trapdoor. He tugged on it hard, and the door swung up.

"What do you see?" Hermione asked, craning her neck to try and see through the door.

"Nothing—just black," Ron reported back. "There's no way of climbing down. We'll just have to drop."

Lucy swallowed nervously.

"You want to go first?" Ron asked, looking at Harry, and Lucy looked over to see Harry nodding, the flute still to his lips. "Are you sure?" Ron questioned. "I don't know how deep this thing goes."

"Hermione, take the flute so Fluffy stays asleep," Lucy said, nodding.

Hermione reached out her hand. Harry passed it over, and Hermione quickly resumed playing. In the silence during the exchange, Fluffy began growling lightly, but as soon as Hermione began blowing into the instrument, the dog fell back into its slumber.

Harry clambered over the dog's leg to join Ron by the door. Lucy saw him take a deep breath before sitting on the edge of the hole with his legs dangling down. Then he lowered himself down until all Lucy could see were his fingers holding onto the floor.

"If anything happens to me, don't follow," Harry's voice came up to them. "Go straight to the Owlery and send Hedwig to Dumbledore, right?"

"Right," Ron replied, and Lucy and Hermione exchanged a worried look.

"See you in a minute, I hope," Harry finished.

"So optimistic, that boy is," Lucy muttered.

Then Harry's fingers disappeared. The other three waited with held breath, hoping for a sign that Harry was all right.

"It's okay!" Harry finally called up to them. "It's a soft landing! You can jump!"

Lucy let out a sigh of relief.

Ron quickly sat and swung his legs into the trapdoor. "I'm going to jump," he said to the girls. "Lucy, you follow me—and then Hermione after."

"Make sure you let me know when you've made it down," Lucy replied. "I don't want to fall on you. Then I'll let Hermione know when I'm out of the way."

Both Ron and Hermione nodded, and Ron slid through the trapdoor.

"Come on, Hermione," Lucy said once he was out of sight. "Let's get up to the door." She climbed over Fluffy's leg and then helped Hermione over, so she could continue using the flute.

"Lucy, the landing's clear!" Ron's voice echoed up from below them.

Lucy nodded to Hermione, sat down on the floor, and slid through the trapdoor like Ron had. She couldn't help the little squeak that escaped her as she fell through the air. Then, after only a few seconds, she landed beside Ron and Harry.

"Hermione, come on down!" Lucy called as she scooted away from where she had landed.

The music stopped, and they heard a great bark from above. Then Hermione landed next to Harry.

"We must be miles under the school," she said, looking around.

"Lucky this plant thing's here, really," Ron replied.

" _Lucky_!" Hermione cried suddenly. "Look at the three of you!" She had jumped up and was making her way over to the wall with difficulty.

Lucy looked down in horror and saw that the plant had started to wind itself around her legs and ankles. She was surprised that she hadn't noticed it until Hermione had said something.

"Stop moving!" Hermione shouted at them. "I know what this is—it's a Devil's Snare!"

"Oh, I'm so glad we know what it's called. That's a great help," Ron snapped. He was attempting to keep the Devil's Snare from wrapping a tentacle-like vine around his neck.

"Shut up, Ron!" Lucy snarled back. "Stop moving—the more you struggle, the faster it moves."

"I'm trying to remember how to kill it," Hermione said anxiously.

"Well, hurry up! I can't breathe!" Harry coughed out.

"Devil's Snare, Devil's Snare… what did Professor Sprout say? It likes the dark and the damp," Hermione mused aloud.

"So light a fire!" Harry gasped.

"Yes, of course," Hermione said, "but there's no wood!"

"HAVE YOU GONE MAD?" Ron shouted. "ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?"

"Oh, right!" Hermione said. She pulled her wand from her robes and cast her blue flame spell.

Lucy was the first one to untangle herself from the plant, and she backed quickly into the wall where Hermione was standing. Then she pulled her own wand out and mimicked Hermione, sending more flames towards the plant. It began to writhe away from the boys much more quickly, and they hurriedly joined the girls along the wall.

"Lucky you pay attention in Herbology, Hermione," Harry said, running a hand over his face.

"Yeah," Ron said, "and lucky Harry doesn't lose his head in a crisis— _there's no wood_ — _honestly_."

"Shove off, Ron. If you hadn't been squirming so much, it wouldn't have been as dangerous as it was," Lucy shot back, glaring at him.

"This way," Harry said, interrupting them. He pointed down a stone passageway, which was the only path they could see that led away from the plant.

 **~LJ:TH~**

All four of them were quiet as they walked along the passage, and there was no other sound apart from the occasional water drip. They walked for a long time in silence until finally—

"Can you hear something?" Ron asked in a low voice.

The other three strained their ears to listen for what Ron was hearing.

"Do you think it's a ghost?" Hermione whispered, looking worried.

"I don't know," Lucy replied. "Sounds like wings to me."

The rustling sound grew louder as they continued forward.

"There's light ahead—I can see something moving," Harry announced after a few beats of quiet.

They kept moving forward until they came to the door of a surprisingly bright chamber with a high ceiling. Among the rafters flew brightly colored birds, drifting lazily amongst each other. Across from the doorway they were standing in was another door.

"Do you think they'll attack us if we cross the room?" Ron asked, breaking the silent awe.

"Probably," Harry replied. "They don't look very vicious, but I suppose if they all swooped down at once.… Well, there's no other choice.… I'll run."

Lucy and Hermione looked worried as he prepared himself. Then, after covering his face with his arms, Harry broke into a run. None of the birds paid him any attention, however. When Harry reached the other end of the room, he grabbed onto the handle of the door and tugged.

"I can't get it to move," he called back to the others. "I think you'll be able to come across, though. I don't think they'll attack or anything."

The other three proceeded with caution, but as Harry had guessed, the birds didn't come down from the air. Lucy and Ron took hold of the handle and tried pulling it together, but there was nothing for it; the door was stuck.

"Let me try," Hermione said, not unkindly. She stepped up, drew her wand out from her sleeve, and tapped the handle. " _Alohomora_!" Nothing happened, and Hermione looked down dejectedly.

"It was worth a try, 'Mione," Lucy said encouragingly.

The four of them turned around to investigate the room again.

"Now what?" Ron asked.

"These birds… they can't be here just for decoration," Hermione added thoughtfully.

They all watched the birds, each thinking about what they could do.

"They're not birds!" Harry suddenly burst out. "They're _keys_! Winged keys—look carefully. So, that must mean…" he trailed off, looking around the room.

Hermione and Ron were squinting up at the keys, while Lucy watched Harry carefully.

"Yes! Look," Harry continued, "broomsticks! We've got to catch the key to the door!"

"But there are _hundreds_ of them!" Hermione exclaimed in disbelief.

Ron turned and looked carefully at the handle of the door. "We're looking for a big, old-fashioned one—probably silver, like the handle," he reported.

"Let's get looking, then," Lucy said. "The sooner we find this key, the better."

The four of them hurried to where Harry had pointed out the broomsticks and took off into the air. Unsurprisingly, they hadn't been in the air long when Harry spotted the correct key.

"That one!" he shouted out to them. "That big one—there—no, there—with the bright blue wings—the feathers are all crumpled on one side."

Without further ado, Ron immediately zoomed towards it, missed, and nearly sent himself crashing into the wall.

"Ron, be careful!" Lucy scolded.

"We've got to close in on it!" Harry instructed. "Ron, you come at it from above—Hermione, stay below and stop it from going down—Lucy, you come in with me and stay on the left. I'll try to catch it coming at it from the right."

Hermione and Ron took their places, and Lucy zoomed over to fly next to Harry.

"Right," Harry called. "NOW!"

Ron dived down, and Hermione zoomed upward; the key dodged both of them. Lucy blasted towards it from its left, and it evaded her, as well. Harry flew right after it. The key and Harry got closer and closer to the wall when Harry reached out and pinned the key against the stones.

Lucy, Ron, and Hermione cheered loudly as they landed again. Harry hurried to the door, jammed the key into the lock, and turned it. The lock clicked, and the four knew it had worked. Harry let go of the key, which feebly fluttered back to the others.

"Ready?" Harry asked, panting slightly.

The other three nodded, and Harry pulled the door open. Their eyes were immediately met with darkness, and they hesitantly stepped through the door.

 **~LJ:TH~**

As they entered the next room, lights immediately appeared, showing them to be in another large chamber. It was not empty. On the floor in front of them was a giant chessboard. Directly ahead of them were huge black chess pieces. They could see in between these chessmen to the opposite side of the room, where the white counterparts towered, blocking the door to the next room.

"Now what do we do?" Harry whispered to his nervous friends.

Lucy shrugged wordlessly.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Ron spoke up. "We've got to play our way across the room."

"We can't just walk across and try to get through the door?" Hermione asked uncertainly. She had never been that great at chess.

"No, I think Ron's right," Lucy replied. "What would be the point of having this huge chessboard here if all we had to do is walk across it?"

"Well, how are we going to play our way across, then?" Hermione asked, turning to Ron.

"I think," Ron started slowly, "we're going to have to play as chessmen." He slowly walked over to a black knight piece and reached his hand out.

The piece sprung to life immediately, causing Lucy and Hermione to take a startled step back. The knight looked down at Ron.

"Do we—er—have to join you to get across?" Ron asked the piece. The knight nodded, and Ron turned to look at his friends. "This needs thinking about…" he said, more to himself than the others. "I suppose we've got to take the place of four of the black pieces.…"

The other three remained silent while Ron contemplated what they should do.

After a few minutes, he spoke up again, saying, "Now, don't be offended or anything, but none of you are that good at chess."

"We're not offended," Harry said quickly. "Just tell us what to do."

Lucy noticed that he was looking quite nervous. "You're the boss here, Ron," she added with a slight smirk, trying to ease the anxiety of her companions.

"Well, Harry, you take the place of that bishop, and Hermione, you go next to him instead of that castle," Ron commanded lightly. "Lucy, you're going to have to take the other castle's place, on the other side of the board."

"What about you?" Hermione asked in a soft voice.

"I'm going to be a knight," Ron announced.

As if the chessmen had been listening to them the entire time, a knight, a bishop, and both castles turned their backs on the board and walked off to the side. There were now four empty squares, which the four first-years went to quietly. Lucy was alone next to the huge chess pieces. She leaned forward to try and see her friends.

"Lucy, can you hear me?" Ron called from his position.

"Loud and clear, captain," Lucy replied.

"White always plays first in chess," Ron said. "Yes… look…"

One of the white pawns had slid forward two spaces.

The game had begun. Ron commanded the black pieces around the board, while Lucy, Harry, and Hermione remained quiet. The chess pieces didn't make a sound as they moved to where Ron sent them. Occasionally, Ron would send Lucy, Harry, or Hermione to another square, and they would go immediately. Sometimes Ron had to save them, getting them out of danger of being taken.

At one point, Lucy glanced at Harry and could tell what he was thinking: _What if they lost_? Lucy was wondering the exact same thing.

"We're nearly there," Ron murmured eventually. "Let me think.… Let me think.…"

There was silence except for the white queen piece turning back to face front after taking out their other bishop.

"Yes," Ron finally said, "it's the only way.… I've got to be taken."

"NO!" the other three shouted. Lucy swallowed with difficulty. She didn't think that the queen would take it easier on Ron when she took him out just because he was a human and not an actual chess piece.

"That's chess!" Ron shot back hotly. "You've got to make some sacrifices! I take one step forward, and she'll take me," he explained, gesturing to the queen. "That leaves you free to checkmate the king, Harry!"

Harry started, "But—!"

"Do you want to stop Snape or not?" Ron asked

Hermione squeaked, "Ron—"

"Look, if you don't hurry up, he'll already have the stone!" Ron cut her off impatiently.

The other three fell into a quiet despair.

"Ready?" Ron said, taking a few extra seconds to prepare himself. "Here I go—now, don't hang around once you've won." Then, before the others could say anything else, he took his move.

As soon as he had stopped, the white queen lashed out at him, her arm connecting solidly with his head. Hermione screamed but remained in her place. Ron collapsed to the floor, unconscious, and the queen dragged him from the playing field. Then the queen took her new space.

"Go, Harry," Lucy whispered softly, keeping her eyes on Ron's unmoving figure.

Harry moved a few spaces. The white king immediately took the crown from his head and threw it at Harry's feet. With that, the chess pieces bowed and then moved to the sides of the board, leaving them a path to the door.

Lucy immediately sprinted to Ron's side. When she reached him, she looked up to see Harry and Hermione watching her. They were still standing on the board, looking confused.

"You two go on," Lucy said to them. "I'll stay with him. When he wakes up, we'll find a way out and try sending a message to Dumbledore."

Harry nodded and pulled Hermione away without a word. There was a look of determination on his face as the two of them disappeared through the door.

Lucy knelt on the ground next to Ron and checked his head. There was a small cut at his left temple but otherwise he seemed okay. He was probably going to be nice and bruised up, though, Lucy figured. He had collapsed onto a stone floor, after all. She quickly took off her sweater, shivering slightly in just her plain t-shirt, and balled it up under Ron's head. Then she waited.

 **~LJ:TH~**

It wasn't long before Ron began to stir.

"Ron!" Lucy exclaimed in relief.

His eyes fluttered for a moment before he opened them fully.

"How are you feeling?" Lucy pressed.

"Lucy?" Ron asked groggily. "I feel like I got hit by a bunch of bricks. My head is pounding. Wait—what happened to Harry? And Hermione?"

He tried to quickly jump up, but Lucy put a forceful hand on his shoulder and made him stay down. "Harry and Hermione went on," she explained. "I stayed behind to make sure nothing happened to you."

Ron blinked at her. "Thanks," he murmured quietly. Lucy smiled at him, and he quickly asked, "What are we going to do now?"

Lucy helped him slowly into a sitting up position. She swept her sweater back on over her head, as well. "First of all, we're going to have to find a way out," she replied. "It'd probably be a good idea to get the Invisibility Cloak, too, before someone else finds it."

A noise made the two of them quiet immediately. They turned to the door where Harry and Hermione had gone through. Lucy thought she heard footsteps on the other side.

Then Hermione burst through the door.

"Hermione!" Lucy exclaimed, jumping up and running at her. They met halfway between the door and where Ron was sitting. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Hermione replied breathlessly. "Harry went on to find the stone. Ron, are you okay?"

"I'm good," Ron answered, struggling to his feet. When he made it up, he looked a bit shaky but otherwise seemed fine. "We should go after Harry, in case he needs some help."

"No!" Hermione insisted. "Listen, Harry told me what we should do. We need to get the brooms from the key room and fly out of here. Then we need to send an owl to Dumbledore to explain what happened tonight."

Ron shouted, "But—!"

"Hermione's right," Lucy said, shaking her head at him. "We have to try to get more help. Let's get going!"

With that, the three of them set off quickly, going back the way they came.

In the next room, they each picked up a broom and kicked off into the air. They soared through the passage and the room with the Devil's Snare before coming up short.

"What about Fluffy?" Ron said in a worried voice.

The girls looked at him blankly for a moment.

"Wait!" Lucy said. "Hermione, you still have the flute, right?"

Hermione nodded, reaching into her sweater pocket and pulling the flute out.

"Okay, 'Mione, you're going to have to go first," Lucy instructed. "Start playing the flute, and you should be okay to fly through the trapdoor without Fluffy noticing."

Hermione quickly put the flute to her lips and played a few notes. She hovered in the air for a few seconds, playing the flute near the opening of the trapdoor. Then she slowly flew her broom through the door. Lucy and Ron followed closely.

Once back in the third-floor corridor, the three of them dismounted. Hermione continued to blow into the flute, and they dropped the broomsticks to the floor with a clatter. Lucy felt around the trapdoor and scooped up the Invisibility Cloak.

"We should really be more careful with this thing," she muttered as she joined her friends.

They hurried out of the room and down the corridor. They had just exited the forbidden part of the third floor when they stopped short. In front of them, Dumbledore was moving swiftly in their direction.

"Harry's gone after him, hasn't he?" Dumbledore said somberly.

Surprised and slightly out of breath, Lucy, Hermione, and Ron could only nod. Dumbledore turned and hurried in the direction they had just come from. For an old man, he moved pretty quickly.

"Now what do we do?" Hermione asked quietly.

Lucy looked quickly at Ron. "We should take Ron up to the hospital wing," she said.

"I don't need to go to the hospital!" Ron insisted.

"Ron, you might have a concussion," Lucy scolded him, "or possibly even internal bleeding. You need to be looked at."

Ron sighed darkly, but he allowed Lucy and Hermione to take him up to the hospital wing.

 **~LJ:TH~**

When they reached the ward, Madam Pomfrey hurried out of her office, looking both worried and irritated. "What are you children doing out of bed at this hour?" she demanded.

"It's an emergency," Lucy replied. "Ron here… er—"

"Ron fell down a flight of stairs," Hermione cut in helpfully. "We were worried that he might have a concussion or maybe even internal bleeding."

Madam Pomfrey eyed the three of them for a moment. "Very well," she said. "Come here, Mr. Weasley. We'll check you over."

Ron stood in front of Madam Pomfrey as she waved her wand over him for a few minutes. Then, after telling them all to stay put, she went over to a cupboard on the other side of the room. She returned a moment later with a goblet full of potion.

"Here you are," she said. "Drink all of this, and then I want you all to go right back to your house. Mr. Weasley, you'll need to go to sleep right away for the potion to start working."

"Thank you," the three Gryffindors chorused.

Madam Pomfrey watched as Ron drank the entire goblet. When he was finished, she took the goblet from him, and the students left the hospital wing.

"What about Harry?" Ron asked as he and the girls walked down the corridor. "What if something's happened to him? We have to wait up to see him—"

"Ron, you heard Madam Pomfrey," Lucy said immediately. "You have to go straight up to bed. We'll figure out what happened to Harry in the morning."

So, they silently made their way back to Gryffindor Tower. They didn't meet any teachers or ghosts along the way. The Fat Lady was unhappy when they woke her up to give her the password, but she swung open and let them in.

The first thing that Lucy noticed was that Neville was no longer in the common room. Someone must have found him and removed the Full Body-Bind Curse while Lucy and her friends had been away. She wondered who had removed the curse and if Neville had told them who'd cast it on him in the first place.

Lucy sent Ron up to his dormitory, and then she followed Hermione up the girls' staircase. When she reached her bed, she fell on top of it, exhausted. Evie appeared and snuggled into Lucy's side. Lucy fell into an uneasy sleep, her worries for Harry following her into her dreams.

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: The end of this chapter has gone through many transformations over the years. I'm finally mostly satisfied with this one.**_


	16. 15: The End of the Year

_**A/N: This is the final chapter of This is Home!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 15 – The End of the Year**

The morning following their adventure, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione went down to breakfast together. There was no sign of Harry. They were starting to worry when Dumbledore approached them at the Gryffindor table.

"Is Harry all right?" Lucy asked immediately.

"Yes, Harry will be just fine," Dumbledore replied gently. "He's in the hospital wing. I've also come to ask you to keep this business about the Philosopher's Stone quiet. I would rather not have the whole school knowing about it."

The three Gryffindors promised that they wouldn't talk about it, and when they were finished with their breakfast, they ran up to the hospital wing to see Harry. Unfortunately, he was unconscious, and Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let them in to see him.

"He'll wake up when he's good and ready!" was all she told them. "He needs rest. You'll just have to wait and come back later. Now, shoo!"

Lucy glared darkly at the door that Madam Pomfrey shut in their faces.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Their fellow Gryffindors quickly noticed that Harry was missing. In fact, by that afternoon, the whole house knew that Harry was lying unconscious in the hospital wing. Oliver Wood was particularly upset, since the next day was the final Quidditch match of the year. Gryffindor was scheduled to play against Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor didn't have a back-up Seeker.

"You lot!" Oliver called to Lucy, Ron, and Hermione that afternoon. He stomped over to where they were sitting in the common room.

"What's up?" Ron asked.

"Don't _what's up_ me!" Oliver exclaimed. "What did Potter do that landed him in the hospital wing the day before the biggest match of the year? He _knows_ that this game is important to us and that we have no back up for him!"

Lucy began, "Calm down, Oliver—"

"Calm down!?" Oliver cried, cutting her off. "We are so close to winning the cup! We were going to win it this year, and then McGonagall tells me that Potter won't be able to play in the final match!" He glared down at the three first-years.

"I'm sorry, Oliver, but even if we knew exactly what had happened to him, we couldn't tell you," Lucy snapped back.

Ron and Hermione nodded, and Oliver angrily turned on his heel and stalked away from them.

At dinner that night, Dumbledore announced to the school that Professor Quirrell had passed away. Lucy, Ron, and Hermione exchanged startled and confused looks. There were many whispered conversations that broke out after this announcement, but Dumbledore didn't elaborate on the subject.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The next morning before the Quidditch match, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione attempted to visit Harry in the hospital wing again. Now that the rest of the school knew that he was in the hospital, many other students tried to get in, as well. However, he was still unconscious, and Madam Pomfrey refused to let anyone in to see him.

At eleven o'clock, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione joined the rest of their house down at the Quidditch pitch. The Gryffindor team only had six players, since they had no back-up Seeker. The game was hardly entertaining for their house, and Ravenclaw beat them soundly. Slytherin ended up being awarded the Quidditch Cup for the year.

Unfortunately, after the Quidditch match, a rumor started to spread. There were whispers going around about how Harry had gone after a Philosopher's Stone that had been hidden in the forbidden third-floor corridor, which was why he was in the hospital wing. Lucy wasn't sure how the rumors began, as the only people who truly knew what had happened that night were Harry and Dumbledore.

The story began to grow, and soon the students were talking about the entire adventure Lucy and her friends had been on. Lucy was bewildered when she overheard her fellow Gryffindors talking amongst themselves about the Devil's Snare, the flying keys, and the giant chess match. She had no idea how any of them had found out, since she, Ron, and Hermione hadn't said a word on the subject.

That afternoon, students of all ages and from all houses were badgering Lucy, Ron, and Hermione to find out what really happened. However, they stayed true to the promise they made to Dumbledore, and the three of them refused to answer any questions. They spent a majority of the afternoon outside to stay away from the other students.

 **~LJ:TH~**

They couldn't stay away from everyone all day, though. When they returned to the common room before dinner, Sally-Anne came up to Lucy.

"Everybody's talking about it," she began. "Did you guys really try and save the Philosopher's Stone from You-Know-Who the other night?"

"Where are all these rumors coming from?" Lucy asked, trying to dodge the question.

"Well, I heard it from my sister," Sally-Anne replied, "who heard it from Tom McLaggen. He heard it from his sister Opal, who says that the person who told her had heard it from a portrait somewhere in the castle."

"The portraits around here gossip more than the students do," Lucy grumbled.

"So, is any of it true?" Sally-Anne asked. "Did you guys save the stone or what?"

"Look, Dumbledore asked us not to talk about it," Lucy said in a low voice.

Sally-Anne whooped. "So, it _is_ true!" she exclaimed. "You guys really _did_ go to the forbidden corridor to save the stone! So, what happened? Did you actually get the stone?"

"I don't know," Lucy replied honestly. "I'm not sure what happened."

Sally-Anne's face fell. "Why can't you tell anybody about what happened?" she asked.

"We promised Dumbledore," Lucy repeated. "I promise that I'm telling you the truth, though. I don't know what happened that put Harry in the hospital wing. I don't know what happened to the stone."

"So, there _was_ a Philosopher's Stone!" Sally-Anne exclaimed eagerly.

 _Oops_ , Lucy thought. "I—Look, it's not important," she said aloud. "I'm sure if we were in any kind of danger, Dumbledore would have made some kind of announcement." She knew it was too late, though; the damage had been done, and she could read the excitement all over Sally-Anne's face. "I'm going to go down to the Great Hall," Lucy said hastily. "I'll see you later."

At dinner, Lucy, Hermione, and Ron sat alone at the end of the Gryffindor table. They could hear the whispered rumors of things that had happened two nights previously, but they still didn't talk about it. When they were done eating, they went up to their common room and into their respectful dormitories to avoid the rest of their house.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Finally, the next evening, Dumbledore once again approached Lucy, Ron, and Hermione in the Great Hall.

"I would like to inform you that Harry has finally awoken," he said in a soft but warm voice. "I daresay you wish to see your friend as soon as possible." The corners of his mouth turned upward as he bid them a good evening and moved on to the staff table.

Lucy exchanged glances of relief and happiness with Ron and Hermione. Then the three of them hurried to the hospital wing.

Madam Pomfrey let them into the ward after snapping at them, "Five minutes _only_!"

" _Harry_!" Hermione shouted as she and the other two rushed to Harry's bed. "Oh, Harry—we were sure you were going to—Dumbledore was so worried!"

"The whole school's talking about it," Ron informed Harry. "What _really_ happened?"

"Yeah, Harry, what happened?" Lucy echoed. "People keep expecting us to know—they don't believe that we don't."

Harry grinned at his friends before launching into the story of what happened to him when he met Quirrell at the end of the trail instead of Snape. As Harry explained how You-Know-Who had been sharing Quirrell's body and that Quirrell's turban had been hiding You-Know-Who's face the entire year, Hermione actually screamed out loud.

"So, the stone's gone?" Ron asked when Harry was finished. "Flamel's just going to _die_?"

"That's what I said," Harry replied, "but Dumbledore thinks that—what was it?— _to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure_."

"I always said he was off his rocker," Ron said with a note of pride in his voice, and Lucy chuckled.

"So, what happened with you three?" Harry asked.

"Well, I stayed with Ron, like I said I would," Lucy said. "I made sure I was there when he woke up, so he wouldn't be confused or anything. He came around not too long after you and Hermione had left, and we were just deciding what to do when Hermione showed up again." Lucy nodded at Hermione to let her take the wheel and finish off the story.

"We did as you said," Hermione continued. "We went back into the room with the keys and took some broomsticks. Then we flew back out into the third-floor corridor, and we were about to run up to the Owlery when we ran into Dumbledore. He was coming straight at us, and he just said, _Harry's gone after him, hasn't he?_ Then he hurtled off after you."

"D'you think he meant you to do it?" Ron asked thoughtfully. "Sending you your father's cloak and everything?"

" _Well_ ," Hermione snarled fiercely, "if he did—I mean to say—that's terrible—you could have been killed!"

Lucy nodded in semi-agreement.

"No, it isn't," Harry argued lightly. "He's a funny man, Dumbledore. I think he sort of wanted to give me a chance. I think he knows more or less everything that goes on here, you know. I reckon he had a pretty good idea we were going to try, and instead of stopping us, he just taught us enough to help. I don't think it was an accident that he let me find out how the mirror worked. It's almost like he thought I had the right to face Voldemort if I could."

"That may be, but he should probably wait until you're older to let you have a try at You-Know-Who," Lucy disapproved. "Then you'll have more experience and more knowledge."

"Yeah, Dumbledore's off his rocker, all right," Ron said. Then he turned to Harry and launched into a different topic, saying, "Listen, you've got to be up for the end-of-term feast tomorrow. The points are all in, and Slytherin won, of course—you missed the last Quidditch match. We were steamrolled by Ravenclaw without you—but the food'll be good."

Suddenly, Madam Pomfrey was back, screeching at them, "You've had nearly fifteen minutes, now OUT!" She started to usher them out of the wing.

"Find us in the Great Hall tomorrow night for the feast, Harry!" Lucy called to her friend. "Unless you get out earlier. Then we'll probably be in the common room!"

"OUT!"

 **~LJ:TH~**

The next day, Harry never showed up in the tower. When Lucy and Hermione had gone back up to their dormitory to get ready for the end-of-term feast, there still was no sign of him.

"Do you think Pomfrey will let him go to the feast at all?" Lucy asked as the girls put on their nicest robes.

"I hope so," Hermione answered. "That would be very unkind of her to keep him from going."

The girls went down to the common room a few minutes later and met up with Ron. Harry was still nowhere to be seen, so they decided to go to the feast without him.

"He'll show up in the Great Hall," Ron assured the girls. "C'mon, let's get down there quickly. We can save him a seat!"

When they entered the Great Hall, they noticed that it was decorated with the silver and green colors of Slytherin. Ron groaned at this, but Lucy glared at him.

"Whether you like it or not, they won fair and square," she hissed at him.

"Snape favors them," Ron argued back. "How is that fair and square?"

Lucy rolled her eyes.

The three of them grabbed their seats, saving one for if Harry showed up. Ron was getting impatient, claiming he was hungry and wanted the feast to start.

Then, suddenly—

"Harry!" Lucy breathed, looking at the Great Hall entrance.

The hall had gone quiet. Harry started walking quickly to where his friends were seated at the Gryffindor table, and everyone in the hall began talking all at once. Harry swiftly dropped into the seat they had saved for him next to Ron. People at the far ends of the hall were standing up to get a look at him. Lucy shook her head; he wasn't a zoo animal to be gawked at.

Then the talking died away as the entire school shifted its focus to the staff table. Dumbledore had entered and was standing before them, beaming away.

"Another year gone!" he announced. "I'm afraid I must trouble you with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are all a little fuller than they were.… You have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts."

Lucy laughed aloud at this, as did many other students.

"Now, as I understand it, the House Cup needs awarding, and the points stand thus," Dumbledore continued. "In fourth place, Gryffindor, with two hundred and sixty-two points; in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two; Ravenclaw is in second, with four hundred and twenty-six; and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two."

The Slytherin table erupted into loud cheers. Lucy looked over at them and spotted Jeremy sitting in the middle of the table. He was smiling and clapping along with the rest of his house. Lucy grinned a bit, happy for him.

"Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin," Dumbledore said, bringing the attention back to the front of the room. "However, recent events must be taken into account."

The hall went deadly silent. The students at the Slytherin table were confused at best.

"Ahem," Dumbledore continued. "I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes.… First—to Mr. Ronald Weasley."

Ron's mouth popped open and his eyes widened.

"For the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years," Dumbledore said, "I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

The Gryffindors burst into cheers. Percy was shouting above the noise, "My brother, you know! My youngest brother! Got past McGonagall's giant chess set!"

After a moment, there was silence again.

"Second," Dumbledore announced, "to Miss Hermione Granger… for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Next to Lucy, Hermione lowered her face into her arms. Lucy could hear her crying. The Gryffindors were ecstatic but in disbelief all at once; all of a sudden, they were one hundred points up to where they had been.

"Third—to Miss Lucy Jones," Dumbledore said, and Lucy's breath caught in her throat. "For absolute loyalty in the face of danger, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Next to Lucy, George threw his arms around her shoulders and pulled her in tight as she laughed in disbelief. The noise coming from Gryffindor was becoming deafening. They were now ahead of Hufflepuff in total points.

"Fourth—to Mr. Harry Potter," Dumbledore continued.

The room went so quiet that a person could hear a pin drop.

"For pure nerve and outstanding courage," Dumbledore said, "I award Gryffindor house sixty points."

Two hundred and ten points! They had caught up with Slytherin; in fact, they were tied! The students were beside themselves with excitement, shouting up and down the table that they were tied for first place.

Dumbledore raised his hand from the front of the room, and everyone settled down.

"There are all kinds of courage," Dumbledore said, smiling kindly. "It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom."

It was like a bomb had dropped. Every single Gryffindor student was on their feet, screaming and cheering. People piled on top of Neville, grabbing at him and hugging him for giving them the points they had needed to win. Even students in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were cheering just as loudly as the Gryffindors; finally, _someone_ had beaten Slytherin!

"Which means," Dumbledore announced over the noise, "we need a little change of decoration."

He clapped his hands once, and the Slytherin decorations immediately became Gryffindor ones. Behind the staff table, the banner of the Slytherin serpent became one of a roaring Gryffindor lion.

The feast went well into the night, a wonderful celebration of the year coming to a close. As Lucy went to bed that night, it was with a smile on her face.

 **~LJ:TH~**

The last thing remaining in the term was to receive exam results. Lucy was pleased with hers. Harry and Ron got good marks, as well, and Hermione was at the top of their class.

Everything was finished—the year had come to an end. Everyone's trunks were packed full of their things while their dormitories were emptied. Notes were handed out that told the students to refrain from using magic outside of school.

At breakfast on the day they were leaving Hogwarts, the seventh-years were called one by one to stand up. Once they were all standing, the rest of the school congratulated them on their graduation. They were then escorted out of the hall and down to the boats to cross the lake, so they could see all of Hogwarts for one last time.

The rest of the school gathered in the entrance hall, milling about and waiting for their transportation to take them down to the train. Lucy stood with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, feeling both happy and sad at the same time. She couldn't believe that she had to leave, yet she was excited for a bit of a vacation.

"Hi, Lucy," a voice said.

Lucy turned to see Jeremy standing nearby. He gave her a small smile.

"I'll be right back," Lucy said to her other friends. She stepped over to Jeremy and grinned at him. "Hi."

"Congrats on winning the House Cup," Jeremy said.

"Sorry for sort of stealing it away from Slytherin," Lucy replied. "I was thinking about it this morning, and it didn't seem very fair of Dumbledore to do."

"Maybe, but you guys did save the Philosopher's Stone," Jeremy said with a shrug. Lucy decided not to comment on that, since she had promised Dumbledore she wouldn't tell anyone, and Jeremy went on, "A lot of people in our house assumed that Dumbledore gave it to Gryffindor because you guys are his favorites, anyway."

"I don't know about that," Lucy said. "Anyway, are you looking forward to summer vacation?"

"Two whole months with my father? It's like Christmas has come early," Jeremy deadpanned. Lucy snorted, and Jeremy cracked a smile, too. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "He's not _that_ bad. I'd just rather be here. Instead, I'll most likely be in France with my mother's family."

"Why in France?" Lucy asked.

"My mother's French," Jeremy answered. "Maybe you didn't notice it because you're American and all our accents sound so different to yours, but I've got a bit of a French accent. I'm fluent in both English and French."

"That's pretty cool," Lucy said.

Jeremy shrugged lazily. "It's all right," he said. "My father doesn't like it when I speak French, so I only speak it with my mother when he's not around. I nearly went to Beauxbatons, you know."

"What's that? A French Wizarding school?" Lucy asked curiously.

Jeremy nodded, but before their conversation could go any further, they heard Hagrid's voice calling over the heads of the students. "Firs'-years!" he was saying. "Firs'-years with me!"

"I suppose I'd better catch up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione," Lucy said. "Have a good summer, okay? Or at least, try to. I'll see you in September."

"I'll do my best," Jeremy replied with a wink. "You have a nice summer, too."

Lucy waved at him as she hurried away through the crowd to find her friends.

The first-years gathered around Hagrid, and like the beginning of the year, they were taken to the boats that would take them across the lake. As the boats glided across the water, Lucy looked over her shoulder at the giant castle. She was sad to be leaving, and she already couldn't wait until her second year began.

 **~LJ:TH~**

Once they reached the train station, they all boarded the Hogwarts Express. Lucy and her friends found a compartment to share. They enjoyed their ride, swapping stories about what had happened during the year and sharing the candy they bought from the lunch trolley.

Towards the end of their journey, Lucy and Hermione split off from the boys to change from their robes into their regular clothes.

"Lucy, I just wanted to say thank you," Hermione said quietly. "If it wasn't for you and your friendship, I don't think this year would have been nearly as great as it was."

Lucy turned and hugged her friend. "Of course, Hermione," she said. "I would do the same thing again."

The girls grinned at each other before hurrying to rejoin the boys.

 **~LJ:TH~**

A few minutes later, the train was pulling up to platform nine and three-quarters. Lucy, Harry, Ron, and Hermione got off the train together and joined the line to go through the barrier.

"You must come and stay this summer," Ron said. "All three of you—I'll send you an owl."

"Thanks," Harry replied. "I'll need something to look forward to."

They continued to creep closer to the barrier. As they walked, people kept calling out to Harry.

"'Bye, Harry!"

"See you, Potter!"

"Still famous," Ron pointed out, grinning.

"Not where I'm going, I promise you," Harry said.

The four of them finally reached the barrier. One by one, they stepped through the wall.

"Well, back in the Muggle world," Lucy sighed as the four of them regrouped off to the side of the barrier.

"There he is, Mum! There he is! Look!"

Lucy whipped around; she recognized that voice. It was Ron's younger sister Ginny, and she was pointing at not Ron but Harry.

"Harry Potter!" she screeched. "Look, Mum! I can see—!"

"Be quiet, Ginny. It's rude to point." Mrs. Weasley came into view, her hand on Ginny's shoulder. She smiled kindly as the four kids walked up to her. "Busy year?" she asked.

"Very," Harry said. "Thanks for the fudge and the sweater, Mrs. Weasley."

"Oh, it was nothing," Mrs. Weasley replied, beaming. "Lucy, dear! Look who came all the way here to get you."

Lucy looked around Mrs. Weasley to see Dan and Sue standing a little way away. They smiled when she saw them and came over to join the group. Lucy squealed in glee and threw her arms around her parents.

"Ready, are you?" a gruff voice asked near their group.

Lucy broke away from her parents to see who had joined them. A big, beefy-looking man with a furious expression on his face stood before Harry. Behind him was a tall, skinny woman with blonde hair and a plump boy, both of whom were looking terrified at the sight of Harry and his companions.

"You must be Harry's family!" Mrs. Weasley said, smiling warmly at them.

"In a manner of speaking," the man replied in an annoyed voice.

"Harry? Harry Potter?" Dan repeated, his eyes widening as he finally took a good look at Harry. "Mr. Potter, it's wonderful to meet you. We've heard so much from Lucy." He hurried forward to quickly shake Harry's hand.

"Dad, c'mon—you're embarrassing me," Lucy said in a teasing tone.

The man collecting Harry looked at them as though they had some sort of disease. "Hurry up, boy. We haven't got all day," the man said. He turned on his heel and walked away, ushering the woman and boy with him away from the group as quickly as possible.

Harry didn't follow him right away, hanging back to say good-bye to his friends.

"See you over the summer, then," Ron said.

"Take care of yourself, Harry," Lucy added.

"Hope you have—er—a good holiday," Hermione finished, watching the man leave. She had an anxious look on her face.

"Oh, I will," Harry replied cheerfully. He was grinning gleefully. " _They_ don't know we're not allowed to use magic at home. I'm going to have a lot of fun with Dudley this summer."

With that, Harry trudged after his family, waving back at his friends.

"I can't believe he has to go back with those people," Hermione said, sounding appalled.

"It'll be all right, Hermione," Lucy said. "He'll be okay, and we'll see him very soon." She smiled softly at Harry's retreating back. "We'll see each other soon."

 **~LJ:TH~**

* * *

 _ **A/N: I've rewritten the first half of this chapter (up until they visit Harry in the hospital wing after he wakes up) so many times. This version is the best I could come up with. And I wasn't actually sure who won the Quidditch Cup this year, so I just said it was Slytherin.**_

 _ **The paragraph about the seventh-years all standing in the Great Hall at the end of breakfast and going across the lake in the boats one last time is actually similar to something J.K. Rowling mentioned in an interview way back in 2007. She said that she imagined some sort of graduation ceremony for the seventh-years, and I liked the idea so much that I wanted to add one into this series.**_

 _ **The final conversation Lucy has with Jeremy was something I thought important to add. It reveals a bit more about Jeremy, and it also touches on the fact that Gryffindor winning the House Cup seems a little too perfect of an ending, honestly. And yes, Jeremy's mother is French! More info about his family is brought up in future stories, too; this is just the tip of the**_ ** _iceberg about him._**

 _ **And that's all for this story! The next story in the series is called Shadow of the Day, and the first chapter should be posted on Monday, January 7th! See you there!**_


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